Friday, 30 January 2026

Big Bets Report: Devin Booker, Kendall Jenner Make Million-Dollar SBLX Wagers

Seven-figure bets on Super Bowl odds aren’t unheard of, by any means. There are always a few of them. They just usually tend to come closer to game day. Not this year, though. Led by Houston furniture magnate Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale’s $2 million wager, there are already four Super Bowl 60 bets of a million dollars or more, with nine days until kickoff. That’s completely unrelatable to 99.999999% of us. What is relatable: An average Joe or Jane who, back in August, made a mere $100 bet that is now on the precipice of winning more than $300,000. Read on for more about that incredible prediction, the million-dollar wagers and other intriguing Super Bowl bets. And check back for updates from now through Super Bowl Sunday on Feb. 8. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Magic Eight Ball Says … Patriots beat the Seahawks in the Super Bowl. Or at least that’s what one Circa Sports customer surmised way back on Aug. 25. The bettor put $100 on a Super Bowl exacta, a wager in which you not only pick the two teams that will appear in the Super Bowl but which one will win. Preseason, New England and Seattle were Super Bowl long shots. The Seahawks were in the range of +6500 (65/1), and the Patriots were much longer at +10000 (100/1) or more. Putting those two together, and picking New England to beat Seattle in Super Bowl 60, generated almost unheard of odds of +310000. In easier-to-digest terms, that’s 3100/1. "It’s an incredible long-shot bet," Circa Sports director of sportsbook operations Jeff Benson said. "Those are the biggest potential odds I’ve seen on a straight bet in a long time. It’s amazing foresight to predict this matchup." If the Patriots, who are 4.5-point underdogs in Super Bowl 60 odds, pull off the outright upset, then that modest $100 bet wins an eye-popping $310,000. The million-dollar bettors are getting nowhere near that kind of ROI. Mattress Mack is Back It’s been awhile since Jim McIngvale dropped a major wager. But the Houston furniture store owner made a splash on Jan. 22, ahead of the NFL’s conference championship games. Rather than picking a team to win the Super Bowl, McIngvale wagered on which conference would win the big game. And in aiming to get the most bang for his big buck, he went with the underdog, putting $2 million on AFC +200 at Caesars Sports. "You’ve gotta have leverage to do these kinds of things, and +200 is a helluva lot better than -230 or whatever," McIngvale said Thursday. "I thought the AFC would be +180 or so. So that extra 10%, at +200, prompted me to go to Louisiana and make the bet." Texas doesn’t yet have legal, regulated sports betting, hence the quick jaunt to neighboring Louisiana. And speaking of leverage: Per usual, McIngvale is tying his bet to a promotion at his furniture store. Customers who purchase a mattress set of $4,000 or more will get their money back if the Patriots win. Ostensibly, if Mattress Mack’s bet wins, then so do those customers. And McIngvale has faith in the underdog from the AFC. "New England has a good team. Seattle is the hot favorite, but favorites don’t always win," he said. "It’s a football game. Anything can happen." More Millions Not to be overshadowed, a couple of big names made big bets with Fanatics Sportsbook. Model and socialite Kendall Jenner put $1 million on Patriots moneyline +190, banking on a New England outright win, much like McIngvale. Countering that wager, Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker bet $1 million on Seahawks alternate spread -3.5 (-125). Jenner’s bet is the bigger potential winner, if it gets there. A Patriots upset would net $1.9 million in profit (total payout $2.9 million). Booker stands to pocket $800,000 profit if the Seahawks win by four points or more (total payout $1.8 million). Regardless of outcome, Fanatics and Jenner will donate $1 million to a charitable cause. The first seven-figure bet on the actual matchup — Patriots vs. Seahawks, as opposed to McIngvale’s bet on the AFC — landed in Las Vegas at Circa Sports. On Monday, less than 24 hours after Super Bowl 60 odds hit the board, a Circa customer put $1.1 million on Patriots moneyline +188. A New England win will give that bettor a hefty profit of $2.068 million (total payout $3.168 million). Two Down, 3 Million to Go Nearly as impressive as the aforementioned Patriots-Seahawks exacta bet: Back in August, a Seattle believer put together this impressive ladder of major wagers at BetMGM: So the bettor is already well into the black on that $150,000 worth of bets, bagging $1,492,500 in profit so far. If the Seahawks complete the trifecta on Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium, then the BetMGM customer hauls in another $3 million, for a total profit of $4,492,500 (total payout $4,642,500). At DraftKings Sportsbook, a customer put a more relatable sum of $500 on Seahawks +6500 in Super Bowl futures odds. That bet is also in better shape than most could’ve imagined months ago, still alive with a chance to profit $32,500. No, it’s not an eye-popping five- or six-figure bet, with an equally eye-popping six- or seven-figure payout. But I think many of us would like to have that ticket in our hands right about now. Prescient Patriots Picks New England went 4-13 in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 regular seasons. Then the franchise brought in former Patriots great Mike Vrabel as the new coach. Oddsmakers expected some improvement, setting the Pats’ regular-season win total at 8.5. What oddsmakers didn’t foresee — nor did most bettors — was New England going 14-3 and nearly landing the AFC’s No. 1 seed. But one prescient and well-bankrolled bettor was on board even before last year’s Super Bowl was played. On Jan. 21, 2025, the DraftKings customer put $10,000 on New England +8000 in Super Bowl 60 odds. If the Patriots’ surprising turnaround season ends with yet another Lombardi Trophy, then that bettor banks $800,000 in profit (total payout $810,000). That’s worth tying up $10,000 for more than 12 months. Also at DraftKings, in October, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy put $50,000 on Patriots +3500 to win it all. That bet stands to win $1.75 million, if the Patriots finish with a win. On Nov. 10, BetMGM took a $30,000 bet on Pats +2200. If New England lifts the Lombardi, then that customer pockets $660,000 profit (total payout $690,000). More Money Makers? There are still a plethora of five- and six-figure bets to come in Super Bowl 60 odds, and likely a couple more seven-digit wagers, too. Here are a few more notable bets already in the hopper, with date of bet, if available: Bear in mind that these major wagers come from high-rollers who can take such risks and absorb potentially obscene losses. Don’t get carried away with your wagers on Super Bowl odds. Never bet more than you can afford to lose.

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NFL Will Discuss Review For Player Safety Penalties Missed by Officials

The NFL will discuss using video review to assess penalties for player safety-related violations that are missed by officials, the league said Friday. Non-calls are currently not reviewable, but penalties such as grabbing the facemask, unnecessary roughness, roughing the passer and hip-drop tackles could be subject to review. It will be an offseason topic for the NFL competition committee. "I would just say from a player health and safety perspective, we would like to introduce all and any opportunity and options for either putting a flag on the field or any way to try to address this in-game," NFL head of football operations Dawn Aponte said in a conference call with reporters. Facemask penalties have been among the most obvious violations that officials have missed. It would be a significant but not unprecedented change for the NFL. The league made pass interference reviewable in 2019, but it proved unpopular and was scrapped after one season. "It’s a newer conversation," said Jeff Miller, the NFL executive vice president in charge of player safety. "We need to decrease to the extent we can, or improve safety, and one of the ways is to address what happens on field. However we go about doing that is something we’ll talk to the committee about." Aponte said the league issued 30 fines for hip-drop tackles, which put players in danger of sustaining severe knee and ankle injuries. Officials threw just two flags for that tackle, and Aponte said one was an incorrect call and therefore didn't result in a fine. Concussions on kickoffs Concussions on kickoffs are up sharply because of a significantly higher number of returns while the rate of head injuries remains lower than it was before a change in the rules that was designed to make the kickoff safer, officials said. There were 35 concussions on kickoffs in 2025 compared to eight a year ago, but moving the touchback to the 35-yard line resulted in 1,157 more returns. The kick return rate jumped to 74% from 33% last season, and it was the highest return rate in 15 years. While the league is encouraged that the concussion, and overall injury, rate is lower than previous kickoffs, when the coverage team had a running start compared to the standing start of the new rule, Miller said concussions would still be a focal point of conversations in the offseason. "For 20 of the 22 players on the kickoff this year, we saw a decreased injury rate, decreased concussion rates, decreased lower extremity rates," Miller said. "But we did see concussions to the tackler and to the ball-carrier. And so we started the conversation with the competition committee already to take a look at those impacts, to take a look at the formation and structure and the speeds of the play and see if there are ways to address those." The shell of the helmet has become better at protecting players from concussions but the facemask has not, Miller said. He estimated that half of concussions come from blows to the facemask. "If a significant number of concussions on field ... are a result of blows to the facemask, then we need take a look at the facemasks," Miller said. "There's got to be a better way to do this." Dr. Allen Sills, the league's chief medical officer, reiterated his belief that coaching technique plays a role in protecting against concussions as well. "We are on an unending and relentless quest to get the head out of the game," Sills said. "And that is going to be our most effective strategy for reducing concussions, whether we’re talking about the kickoff or any other part of the game." Major knee injuries decline Miller said the number of torn anterior cruciate ligaments in knees was down 25% and reached a seven-year low. He said the number of games missed to injuries was comparable to the previous couple of seasons despite the sharp increase in kickoff returns. Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Minnesota Vikings Fire GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah After Missing Playoffs

We got a stunner. The Minnesota Vikings have fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after four seasons, the team announced on Friday afternoon. Minnesota missed the playoffs this season at 9-8 and made the playoffs twice with Adofo-Mensah as its general manager (2022 and 2024). Head coach Kevin O'Connell was hired at the same time as Adofo-Mensah, with the Vikings 43-25 in the regular season and 0-2 in the postseason under the two since 2022. "Following our annual end-of-season organizational meetings over the last several weeks and after careful consideration, we have decided it is in the best interest of the team to move forward with new leadership of our football operations," Owners Mark and Zygi Wilf said in a statement. "These decisions are never easy. We are grateful for Kwesi's contributions and commitment to the organization over the past four years and wish him and his family the best in the future. "Effective immediately, Executive Vice President of Football Operations Rob Brzezinski will lead our operations through the 2026 NFL Draft. Rob brings tremendous credibility and experience, understands our roster and has the ability to build consensus and rely on the expertise of our personnel and coaches. After the draft, we intend to conduct a thorough search to identify our next general manager. Building a team that can contend for championships drives us every day, and we look forward to bringing our fans the success they so deserve." Brzezinski has been in Minnesota's front office since 1999, previously serving as director of football administration (1999-2000), vice president of football administration (2001-13) and executive vice president of football operations (2014-25). He was previously a staff counsel and salary cap manager for the Miami Dolphins from 1993-99. Prior to becoming Minnesota's general manager in 2022, Adofo-Mensah was the Vice President of Football Operations for the Cleveland Browns from 2020-21 and worked in the San Francisco 49ers' front office from 2013-19. Coming off a 14-3 season in 2024, the Vikings let quarterback Sam Darnold, who threw for a career-high 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns in the regular season, leave in free agency after Minnesota lost its Week 18 road matchup against the Detroit Lions and its wild-card round matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. This was done with 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy — who missed his rookie season due to a torn meniscus in his right knee — in line to become the team's starting quarterback. Regarding this season, McCarthy started just 10 games due to ankle, head and hand injuries, totaling 1,632 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a 72.6 passer rating, while completing 57.6% of his passes. He also rushed for 181 yards and four touchdowns. Meanwhile, Darnold signed a three-year, $100.5 million deal with the Seattle Seahawks last offseason. This season, he earned a Pro Bowl nod, while the Seahawks won the NFC and will now face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8. As for this coming offseason, Minnesota is over the NFL salary cap.

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Thursday, 29 January 2026

Super Bowl LX Betting Report: 'The Public Isn’t Buying the Patriots'

When the NFL season began, the Patriots and Seahawks were afterthoughts in Super Bowl 60 odds. Bookmakers had Seattle at +6000 or longer to win the championship, and New England was an even longer shot at +10000 (100/1). Five months later, though, it’s Patriots vs. Seahawks, with the NFL somewhat mimicking the College Football Playoff, which saw preseason long-shot Indiana win the national title. But make no mistake, even with an unexpected matchup, Super Bowl 60 betting will still be huge and is off to a strong start. "There’s a lot of shock with who’s here," Caesars Sports director of football trading Joey Feazel said. "But we’re gonna see really heavy action on this game, regardless of the teams, with the magnitude of this event and the magnitude of ways to bet." Oddsmakers and sharp bettors serve up their insights on Patriots vs. Seahawks, as we take an early look at Super Bowl betting. Middle Ground The Seahawks are 16-3 straight up (SU) and a covering cash cow at 14-5 against the spread (ATS). The Patriots are 17-3 SU and a money-making 14-6 ATS. But the point spread isn’t quite as close as the two teams’ records. Caesars Sports opened Seattle as a 4.5-point favorite in Super Bowl odds and advanced to -5 a few times in the first 12 hours or so. The Seahawks returned to -4.5 on Monday morning and remained there Thursday evening. Yet even with more than a week until Super Bowl Sunday, Feazel can tell where things are heading and what Caesars Sports will likely be rooting for, come 6:30 p.m. ET Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium. "Public action is flowing on Seattle on the spread. The public isn’t buying the Patriots," Feazel said. "But we’ll have a decent amount of Patriots moneyline action by game day. We’ll see Patriots +190 action on the moneyline and people laying 4.5 with the Seahawks. "So we’re gonna be rooting for that Super Bowl middle. Our best-case scenario is gonna be a Seahawks win and a Patriots cover." Also, heavily factoring into that scenario: Before the conference championship games, Caesars took a whopping $2 million bet on AFC +200 to win the Super Bowl. That represents a potential $4 million win for the bettor (total payout $6 million). FOX Sports will have more Friday on that massive major wager and other notable Super Bowl bets. Go Low Caesars opened the Super Bowl total at 46.5 and has been steady at 45.5 since Tuesday morning. No surprise, professional bettors took an early bite on Under 46.5 and Under 46. "There was sharper action on the Under. The Seahawks have a phenomenal defense, and the Patriots’ defense really stepped up in these last three games," Feazel said. However, this is the Super Bowl. The public betting masses want nothing to do with a boring game. On the total, they’ll be wagering on the Over. And on the myriad Super Bowl prop bets, the masses will flood the zone with Over or Yes picks. All that money will dwarf sharp action. "At the end of the day, it’s the Super Bowl. So we’ll need the Under," Feazel said. "Early action favors the Over, and that will not change. We’re gonna need a lower-scoring game." NFL Sharp Side Professional bettor Randy McKay isn’t yet sure which team he’ll back in Super Bowl 60 odds, saving that decision for closer to game day. But he’s already singled out a Super Bowl prop bet he likes. On the Yes/No of whether Patriots quarterback Drake Maye throws an interception, McKay is on Yes -125. "I think that’s a pretty cheap price," McKay said. "He’s a young quarterback on the big stage of the Super Bowl. So there’s all that. "Plus, he’ll have to press, because I believe Seattle will have the lead. And the Seahawks have a very opportunistic defense."

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2026 NFL Offseason Buzz, Rumors: Falcons Reportedly Plan to Release Kirk Cousins

The NFL offseason hasn't officially arrived yet, but 30 teams are already looking ahead to 2026. As teams continue to fill out their coaching staffs, some teams are already making plans on what to do with their rosters ahead of the start of the new league year in March. Who'll get cut? Who'll get traded? Who'll get extended? Who'll get the franchise tag? Here's the latest look at some of the most notable rumors around the NFL. Falcons reportedly plan to release Kirk Cousins, but could bring him back Kirk Cousins' time in Atlanta seems to be nearing its end. The Atlanta Falcons are planning to cut the veteran quarterback, The Athletic reported. But the Falcons would be interested in re-signing Cousins on a cheaper contract, The Athletic added in its report. Cousins, 37, signed a four-year, $180 million deal to join the Falcons in the 2024 offseason, just months after he tore his Achilles. His tenure in Atlanta began with some promise before getting benched late in the 2024 season for Michael Penix Jr., who the Falcons selected with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft. Penix was the Falcons' starting quarterback to open the 2025 season. However, Cousins wound up starting eight games as Penix suffered a season-ending ACL tear in November. Cousins put up a respectable statline in 2025, completing 61.7% of his passes for 1,721 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions with an 84.8 passer rating. The Falcons went 5-3 in Cousins' eight starts as well. But that wasn't good enough for Cousins to guarantee his spot in the Falcons' new regime, with Matt Ryan running football operations and Kevin Stefanski entering his first season as Atlanta's head coach.

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What New Ravens Coach Jesse Minter Learned From Jim Harbaugh, John Harbaugh

New Baltimore Ravens head coach Jesse Minter has a career distinction: He was an assistant coach under both Jim Harbaugh and John Harbaugh. What did Minter learn from the Harbaugh brothers? "I think Jim empowers the players really well to create an identity of team football," Minter told Colin Cowherd on Thursday's edition of "The Herd." "He kind of allows the players to be themselves, but there's this understanding that we're all after the same thing. "We all have the same goals, and so we're willing to kind of put some things aside sometimes and play as a team. I think that's definitely the one identity that I'll certainly try to take from Jim." Minter worked for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan in 2022 as the team's defensive coordinator, a role he held for two seasons (2022-23) and a stint highlighted by the Wolverines winning the 2023 national championship. During that title-winning season, Michigan's defense led the Big Ten in opponent total yards (247.0 per game) and opponent points (10.4 per game). Minter then followed Harbaugh to the Los Angeles Chargers, serving as their defensive coordinator for two years before becoming the Ravens' head coach earlier this month. This season, Los Angeles was fifth in the NFL in opponent total yards (285.2 per game) and ninth in opponent points (20.0 per game). Last season, the Chargers were first in opponent points (17.7 per game) and 11th in opponent total yards (324.4 per game). What about the elder Harbaugh brother? "John really empowered a lot of the coaching staff and even younger guys on the staff like I was when I first got here [in Baltimore as an assistant coach]," Minter said. "There was just an ability to grow, an ability to be forward-thinking, an ability to be creative amongst the staff. I really look forward to kind of being that type of head coach where you're always trying to find better ways to do things. You're always looking for the new great thing and research and studying and doing things like that. "[I] learned a lot from John about just empowering the staff to always really be trying to find that next great idea." Minter spent four seasons on Harbaugh's coaching staff with the Ravens, serving as a defensive assistant from 2017-18, assistant defensive backs coach in 2019 and defensive backs coach in 2020. He had a one-year stint as the defensive coordinator and safeties coach for the Vanderbilt Commodores in 2021 before joining Michigan's staff in 2022. John Harbaugh, who spent 18 seasons as the head coach of the Ravens (2008-25) — a tenure highlighted by Baltimore winning Super Bowl XLVII — became the head coach of the New York Giants after being fired by Baltimore earlier this month. The 42-year-old Minter, who's a first-time head coach, inherits a Baltimore team that went 8-9 and missed the playoffs last season. As for its offseason prospects, offensive linemen Tyler Linderbaum and Daniel Faalele, linebacker Kyle Van Noy and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins are among the Ravens' impending free agents. Baltimore projects to have $13.8 million in cap space this offseason, per Over the Cap.

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Wednesday, 28 January 2026

Pro Football Hall of Fame Releases Statement Addressing Bill Belichick Report

The Pro Football Hall of Fame released a statement on Wednesday to address widespread criticism from a report on Tuesday that revealed that NFL coaching legend Bill Belichick will not be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

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