Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts are favored by Las Vegas oddsmakers to win the Super Bowl after coming up short in their championship bid last season.
The Colts enter the regular season with 13-2 odds of capturing their second National Football League title in five years, according to Las Vegas Sports Consultants, which advises Nevada’s sports books on betting lines.
The 34-year-old Manning led the Colts to an NFL-best 14-2 record last season and beat out New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees to win his fourth Most Valuable Player award before losing to the Saints 31-17 in the Super Bowl. Super Bowl losers don't typically fare well the following season, but oddsmakers think the Colts can overcome history.
“We’ve made some improvements almost in every area a little bit, albeit somewhat incremental, but the true test comes up (this) week,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell said. “That’s when you can really start to gauge exactly who you are. But you can make an assessment, and I think in a lot of areas we got better.”
The 31-year-old Brees and his Saints are tied with the Dallas Cowboys as the second Super Bowl choice with odds of 8-1.
The Saints are seeking to become the first repeat Super Bowl champions since the New England Patriots after the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The Cowboys will aim to become the first franchise to win the title game in its home stadium.
Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, will be the site of this season’s Super Bowl on Feb. 6, 2011.
The San Diego Chargers have 17-2 odds of winning the title, followed by the Patriots at 9-1 and the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings at 10-1.
The Saints host the Vikings and quarterback Brett Favre in the NFL’s regular-season opener on Sept. 9. It’s a rematch of last season’s conference championship game, which the Saints won 31-28 in overtime to reach the Super Bowl.
The Colts, one of two teams to go winless in the preseason, open the regular season on Sept. 12 in Houston.
The New York Jets, who fell one win short of reaching the Super Bowl last season, have 12-1 odds in the second season for coach Rex Ryan and quarterback Mark Sanchez.
The Saints won the Super Bowl last season after entering the year with 20-1 odds of winning the title. The Colts a year ago were the sixth choice to win the championship at 12-1.
Here's a look at the odds of winning the Super Bowl for each team:
Indianapolis Colts 13-2
New Orleans Saints 8-1
Dallas Cowboys 8-1
San Diego Chargers 17-2
New England Patriots 9-1
Green Bay Packers 10-1
Minnesota Vikings 10-1
New York Jets 12-1
Baltimore Ravens 14-1
New York Giants 15-1
Pittsburg Steelers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 22-1
Tennessee Titans 25-1
Cincinnati Bengals 25-1
Washington Redskins 28-1
Chicago Bears 30-1
Houston Texans 30-1
Miami Dolphins 30-1
Philadelphia Eagles 30-1
San Francisco 49ers 40-1
Arizona Cardinals 50-1
Carolina Panthers 50-1
Denver Broncos 50-1
Jacksonville Jaguars 50-1
Seattle Seahawks 50-1
Cleveland Browns 80-1
Detroit Lions 100-1
Kansas City Chiefs 100-1
Oakland Raiders 100-1
Tampa Bay Bucs 100-1
Buffalo Bills 120-1
St. Louis Rams 150-1
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