NFL odds: Patriots open as favorites to repeat as Super Bowl champions

The last team to successfully defend its Super Bowl title? The New England Patriots. After winning the 38th title game in dramatic fashion, the 2004 team — one of the best in NFL history — rolled through the regular season with a 14-2 record before dismantling both the Indianapolis Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers en route to Super Bowl 39 and a meeting with the Philadelphia Eagles. New England won 24-21, securing its third-ever trophy.

15 years later, the 2019 Patriots will get the chance to become the latest team to win back-to-back Super Bowls. New England won its sixth world championship last Sunday by beating the Los Angeles Rams 13-3, and if the oddsmakers are to be believed are favored to get back to the NFL’s promised land yet again (via BetOnline): the Patriots are given 6/1 odds to repeat, which is better than any of the other clubs.

Next in line are the Kansas City Chiefs, who were defeated by the Patriots in the AFC title game, with 7/1 odds. After the Chiefs come the L.A. Rams at 8/1 and the New Orleans Saints at 9/1. On the other end of the spectrum are the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and Oakland Raiders, all entering the offseason with 100/1 odds to win Super Bowl 54 on February 2, 2020.

But of course, those odds are based more on how 2018 played out than anything else. After all, free agency and the draft have not yet happened and all 32 teams will look quite differently when the 2019 season gets kicked off — and that includes a Patriots team with plenty of starters about to hit the open market next month.