Patriots Super Bowl odds take hit, MVP race between Tom Brady and Antonio Brown could be decided on Sunday

The New England Patriots lost to the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football, causing a lot of overreactions about the state of the Patriots, but don’t expect Las Vegas to overreact. While the Patriots odds of winning a Super Bowl have dropped, they remain the favorite.

The Patriots odds dropped from 12/5 (29.4%) to 11/4 (26.7%), which isn’t a huge change, while the Pittsburgh Steelers increased from 9/2 (18.2%) to 4/1 (20.0%) as the AFC powerhouses stay in the top two spots. The Minnesota Vikings (15/2), New Orleans Saints (10/1), Philadelphia Eagles (10/1), Atlanta Falcons (16/1), and Los Angeles Rams (16/1) all have better odds than the third-best teams in the AFC, with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers tied with the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks with 18/1 odds.

The AFC playoff picture is taking a more clear shape with the Patriots (5/4) and Steelers (9/5) still the heavy favorites to win the conference. The Jaguars (8/1) and Chargers (8/1) took big strides forward in closing the gap and are definitely considered contenders by Vegas oddsmakers.

The Kansas City Chiefs (14/1), Baltimore Ravens (20/1), and Tennessee Titans (33/1) round out the perceived competition.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady remains the favorite to win the MVP award with 5/8 odds and with Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz out for the year with a knee injury, there isn’t any obvious competition; an average finish by Brady over the final three weeks will probably lock up his third MVP award.

But Sunday’s game against the Steelers will go a long way in deciding the MVP award since Steelers WR Antonio Brown is tied with Seahawks QB Russell Wilson for second in the MVP rankings with 6/1 odds. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger (12/1, t-4th) and RB Le’Veon Bell (50/1, 7th) are also ranked.

Despite his injury, Wentz is still third with 15/2 odds, while Saints QB Drew Brees and Chargers QB Philip Rivers are tied with Roethlisberger in fourth with 12/1 odds.