The New England Patriots may
have lost their top wide receiver, but they haven’t moved on the Super Bowl LII futures market.
The Pats are still the +325 favourites at
press time despite losing WR Julian Edelman (98 catches, 1106 yards last year)
to a torn ACL. Edelman will miss the entire 2017 season, which starts September
7 when the Patriots host the Kansas City Chiefs at 8:30 PM ET.
Without Edelman’s services, the defending Super Bowl champions will be relying
on newcomer Brandin Cooks (78 catches, 1173 yards for New Orleans) to be their
top wideout. Cooks came over from the Saints in March; he was sixth among NFL
receivers last year at 10.0 yards per target. Chris Hogan (38 catches, 680
yards) should also see some more playing time with Edelman on injured reserve.
Who can challenge the Pats?
The Green Bay Packers (+800) and Oakland Raiders (+1000) are the top contenders
to New England’s crown, according to the NFL futures lines. The Atlanta
Falcons, who nearly beat the Patriots at Super Bowl LI, are available at +1200.
The Falcons have almost all their key players coming back for 2017, and they’ll
be playing in the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium this year.