Super Bowl LIX and NFL playoffs predictions, best bets and odds

Super Bowl LIX best bets

Detroit Lions
2pts 10-3 BoyleSports

Baltimore Ravens
1pt 6-1 general

Already advised (September 5)

Kansas City Chiefs
3pts 11-2 general

Houston Texans
1pt each-way 16-1 bet365, Hills

Green Bay Packers
1pt each-way 18-1 BoyleSports, Hills

Untitled Document

Recommended Offer

4/5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Get £50 In Bet Builder Free Bets When You Place A £10 Bet

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Lengthen the chances of your free Bet Builders with Super Sub

CLAIM OFFER

Super Bowl LIX predictions

The 2024 NFL regular season is complete and the Kansas City Chiefs remain on course for an unprecedented third successive Super Bowl success.

Andy Reid's team have lifted the Vince Lombardi Trophy in three of the last five seasons and are enjoying a week off after wrapping up the top seed for the AFC playoffs. Led by mercurial quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs went 15-2, with the second loss coming on Sunday when they played their back-ups having nothing more to gain.

Their only defeat when it mattered came on the road to regular rivals the Buffalo Bills in Week 11, but if the Bills want to back up that performance it will have to be at Arrowhead Stadium in the AFC Championship game.

Having suffered with offensive injuries throughout the season, the Chiefs acquired replacements to tide them over and now Mahomes has more high-quality options than ever before with Marquise 'Hollywood' Brown finally available after missing most of the year, veteran DeAndre Hopkins acquired in a mid-season trade and rookie Xavier Worthy playing a bigger role in the offence by the week.

Running back Isiah Pacheco missed most of the season with a broken leg but is back now and working in tandem with free-agent signing Kareem Hunt, who led the attack while he was sidelined. Pacheco injured his ribs in Week 17 but a three-week break before the divisional round has worked out well for him.

The Chiefs haven't always convinced this year and only three of their 15 wins came by more than ten points, while there were some narrow scrapes along the way. But they have home advantage in the playoffs after going 8-0 at home so those who took the pre-season 11-2 can be happy enough, even though the Chiefs, now best at 7-2, are not the Super Bowl favourites.

The market is headed by the Detroit Lions, who look well worth adding to any portfolio after securing the NFC first seed with a convincing 31-9 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in a high-stakes battle of two 14-2 teams.

Running back Jahmyr Gibbs scored four touchdowns and the Lions defence held firm in the red zone time and again to keep the Lions at home throughout the playoffs. Ford Field will be a loud and difficult venue for opposing teams to visit.

Dan Campbell's team have won 14 of their last 15 games, and the one defeat was an epic 48-42 encounter with the Bills in which the teams combined for more than 1,000 yards of offence.

The Philadelphia Eagles are the second seeds in the NFC after going 14-3 with running back Saquon Barkley clocking up 2,005 rushing yards in 16 games for his new team but the worry for Philly backers is that quarterback Jalen Hurts has missed the last two games with concussion.

The LA Rams, Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers - who are the same price at 18-1 as they were when tipped pre-season - are all capable sides too, while the winners of what could be an entertaining Wild Card clash between the Washington Commanders and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would have a puncher's chance in the divisional round too, but the Lions should prove hard to dislodge.

The Bills and the Baltimore Ravens look the best alternatives to the Chiefs in the AFC. The Bills won't be happy to see that they're on course to face the Ravens in the divisional round after John Harbaugh's team handed them their biggest defeat of the season, 35-10 in Week Four. Buffalo have wins over the Lions and Chiefs on their record but they have had a relatively soft schedule, with 12 of their 17 games being against teams who failed to make the playoffs.

The Ravens have a 7-3 record against playoff teams this year, going 12-5 despite a tough schedule. They can occasionally lack a killer instinct and quarterback Lamar Jackson has a mediocre playoff record, but he is in better form and health than he was for previous postseason bids and the Ravens look worth backing as an alternative to the Chiefs in the AFC.

The Denver Broncos have impressed this year but face a tough start in Buffalo, while the Pittsburgh Steelers arrive in the playoffs on a run of four losses. The Houston Texans were our other pre-season AFC picks but despite winning their division they have not looked as strong as they did last season and they are home underdogs against the LA Chargers in Saturday's opening Wild Card game.

Untitled Document

Recommended

4/5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Get £20 In Free Bets When You Bet £5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Great acca features, including the ability to edit a live accumulator

CLAIM OFFER

Pickswise is the #1 destination for US sports betting, covering the NFL, NBA, MLB and more in unrivalled detail.

For all your US sports betting needs, make sure to check out Pickswise, the home of stateside picks, predictions and odds.

Click for free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.