AFC Title Odds
The New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts have combined to win the last nine AFC championships. The Patriots and Steelers figure to be in the running again this year, while the Colts are entering a rebuilding phase. But is there anybody else out there able to break through and win this conference this season?
Here's a quick look at the 2012-13 AFC championship betting board open for play at Bovada.lv.
As we might expect defending conference champion New England is the favorite to win the AFC again this season at odds of 3/1. The Pats went 13-3 last year to earn the top seed in the AFC again, then pounded Denver and held off Baltimore to win the conference title for the fifth time in the last 11 seasons. But for the second time in the last five years New England lost the Super Bowl to the New York Giants. This off-season the Patriots tried to address a weakness when they used their first six draft choices to bolster their 31st-ranked defense.
The Houston Texans, after making their first-ever playoff appearance last season, are the second choice on the board at 5/1. Houston may have lost Mario Williams, but they should still be a factor in the AFC.
The Denver Broncos, who made it to the AFC divisional round of the playoffs last January with Tim Tebow at quarterback, now go forward with Peyton Manning at QB and are the third pick to win the conference this season at 6/1.
The Baltimore Ravens, who came oh-so-close to beating New England in the AFC championship game last January, come next at 7/1.
The Steelers, who got upset by Tebow and the Broncos in the Wild-Card round last January, follow at 15/2.
The San Diego Chargers, who have missed the playoffs the last two years, are next at 10/1.
The New York Jets, who also missed the postseason last year then added Tebow to their mix, are getting 12/1 to win the AFC this season.
And the Cincinnati Bengals, who unexpectedly made the playoffs last season, are getting 18/1.
Rounding out Bovada's AFC championship board the Miami Dolphins are listed at 20/1; the Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans at 25/1; the Buffalo Bills and Oakland Raiders at 30/1; the Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars at 75/1; and the Cleveland Browns at 90/1.
