‘Will Peyton Manning Cry?’ And Other Absurd Super Bowl 50 Prop Bets

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is chased out of the pocket by New England Patriots defenders Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, in Denver.

I was probably more in tune with the stats and logic involved with figuring out the best Super Bowl 50 prop bets than I should’ve been… The sample was made up of male and female adults, all 18 years of age or older.

Current federal law only allows traditional, full-fledged sports betting in Nevada. But I do blog about Super Bowl prop bets every year, which makes it even more significant to me, and I like to talk to people who have done deep-dive analysis on this stuff.

Most American Super Bowl fans want to bet on the game, and they want to do it legally.

A survey of 1,000 people by San Francisco ad agency Venables Bell & Partners in 2014 showed that 78% of Americans (up from 59% in 2011) look forward to Super Bowl commercials more than the game.

Nevada is the only state in the USA that operates full-scale regulated sports betting, although a limited version is also found in DE racetracks.

Why is the AGA showing us all these numbers?

Major pro sports leagues were actively fighting sports betting, fearing that it might damage the integrity of the games.

$3.3 million: Amount won by Nevada sports books in 2015.

“This first-of-its-kind poll shows clear support among Super Bowl viewers for a state-by-state regulatory approach to sports betting”, said Mark Mellman of the Mellman Group. “If the public had its way, public policy would change”.

“America’s passion for football is rivaled only by its enthusiasm for sports betting”, said AGA CEO Geoff Freeman.

“Fans believe regulated sports betting enhances the game experience, deepens their engagement with their favorite athletes and teams and protects the integrity of games”, he said.