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May 6, 2015 Staff Writer

NFL News

Patriots See Small Drop on Their Odds to Win Super Bowl 50

The 2015 NFL Draft has come and gone, and the competition for the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots as they attempt to repeat appears to have gotten tougher heading into next year.

The Patriots have dropped from 6/1 odds to win Super Bowl 50 on February 15  down to 15/2 following the free-agency period and draft, with the Indianapolis Colts viewed as their top competition in the AFC from a betting perspective.

The Colts have moved from 14/1 up to 8/1 following the additions of veteran wide receiver Andre Johnson and running back Frank Gore, who both signed as free agents.

Indianapolis also selected another WR in the first round of the draft in Phillip Dorsett from the Miami Hurricanes, further bolstering what should be one of the best offenses in the league. The team’s main question marks right now remain on defense.

New England’s defense is also a bit of a concern considering the losses of starting cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner along with nose tackle Vince Wilfork, who all left as free agents.

The Patriots picked defensive tackle Malcom Brown from the Texas Longhorns in the first round of the draft in hopes of filling the void left by Wilfork, but their secondary is still a work in progress after playing a major role in helping them win the Super Bowl.

The Miami Dolphins look like they may be able to challenge New England for the AFC East crown this season even though their odds to win the Super Bowl have not changed since February 15.

The Dolphins are still sitting at 40/1 to win the big game after adding All-Pro DT Ndamukong Suh as a free agent from the Detroit Lions and drafting a big-play WR in DeVante Parker from the Louisville Cardinals with their first-round pick.

The defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks are favored to win their second Super Bowl in three years, and their odds also are unchanged at 11/2. The Seahawks added All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham in a trade with the New Orleans Saints on the first day of free agency and picked WR Tyler Lockett from the Kansas State Wildcats in the second round of the draft to help bolster their receiving corps.

The Green Bay Packers have not seen their odds change at all either from 7/1 to win the Super Bowl as they look to dethrone Seattle in the NFC. The Packers came close to doing just that in last year’s conference championship game, and they will need to overcome some losses in their secondary via free agency. They did get their top free agent to stick around, as WR Randall Cobb elected to re-sign there.

The Dallas Cowboys are the third top contender in the NFC despite losing running back DeMarco Murray to the rival Philadelphia Eagles as a free agent. The Cowboys have improved from 12/1 to 10/1 to win the Super Bowl following a solid draft that saw them take a chance on Nebraska Cornhuskers linebacker Randy Gregory, who slipped to the second round due to character issues.

Gregory will be counted on early with prized free agent defensive end Greg Hardy suspended for the first 10 games of the season due to conduct detrimental to the league.