BRONCOS

The oddsmakers seem to think Aaron Rodgers is coming to the Broncos

Feb 2, 2022, 5:15 PM

With only one game left in this season – Super Bowl 56 – it’s time for 30 other teams to turn the page to 2022. For everyone other than the Bengals and Rams, it’s all about next year.

What are teams going to look like next year? Well, that’s hard to predict.

Free agency begins in a month. That’ll change the complexion of teams, both positively and negatively. The draft is at the end of April, that can certainly impact the fortunes of a franchise. So it’s hard to say in early February how things will look come September.

That said, there are some early indications as to how teams are trending. One of them is the current odds to win the Super Bowl next season.

When looking at the odds, one thing jumps out. The Broncos are awfully high on the list.

Only six teams are projected to have a better chance than Denver to hoist the Lombardi Trophy next year. Six! That’s staggering, considering the Broncos haven’t had a winning season in five years and haven’t made the playoffs in six.

The Bills and the Chiefs, led by Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, are ahead of them. That makes sense.

The Rams, who could be the defending Super Bowl champs, are higher on the list. That’s easy to understand.

The Niners and Cowboys, teams who faced off in the playoff this season, are in the top five. Okay. Fine.

And the Packers, the No. 1 seed in the NFC in 2021, are ahead of Denver. That’s not a stretch. Or is it?

If Aaron Rodgers was definitely going back to Green Bay, it’s easy to assume they’d be higher. He’s about to be named the MVP for a second-straight season. He’s led the Packers to back-to-back 13-win seasons. They’d be right there with the Bills and Packers.

Instead, they’re 16/1. That’s telling.

Why are they that low? Because the oddsmakers are hedging their bets. They know Rodgers might end up with the Packers. Or he could end up elsewhere.

They’re also telling us where they think that might be. That’s the only explanation for the Broncos being 20/1.

That puts Denver in the same group as Cincinnati, a team playing in Super Bowl 56, and Tennessee, the No. 1 seed in the AFC this year. There’s no other explanation for the jump into that echelon.

Is Nathaniel Hackett an upgrade over Vic Fangio? Everyone hopes so. But he’s a first-time head coach. No one knows for sure.

Have the Broncos solved their QB riddle? Not without Rodgers.

So what else would explain the jump? This is a team that was 55/1 a year ago.

There are a lot of whispers and rumors about Aaron Rodgers coming to Denver. The oddsmakers seem to believe them.

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The oddsmakers seem to think Aaron Rodgers is coming to the Broncos