The Seattle Seahawks are the reigning NFL champions after beating the New England Patriots 29-13 in Super Bowl LX at Levi's Stadium in February.
That victory was their second ever, after their win over the Denver Broncos in 2014, and it closed out the 2025 season perfectly.
But nothing lasts forever, and no sooner had the curtain come down and attention shifted to the 2026 campaign and Super Bowl LXI, with the Los Angeles Rams now leading many early ante-post markets.
At the time of writing, odds at FanDuel Sportsbook have the Rams at around +550 to win Super Bowl 2027, ahead of the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens at roughly +1000, with Seattle near +1100.
Those prices will change frequently once the season gets underway, but they offer a useful early picture of where bookies see the strongest teams.
Why The Rams Lead The Market
The Rams aren’t being backed simply because the Super Bowl will be played at SoFi Stadium, their own stomping ground, but because they begin the season with an incredible roster that sees them ready to compete immediately.
Led by head coach Sean McVay and quarterback Matthew Stafford, this is a highly rated team with an experienced offense, accuracy, and a willingness to attack downfield.
Meanwhile, McVay has a proven record of building a system that gets receivers open and creates manageable looks in the passing game. For a futures bet, continuity between head coach and quarterback matters. Teams can add talent over the summer, but established partnerships are harder to find.
Los Angeles also appears to have a realistic regular-season path to the playoffs. The Rams’ win total has been set at 11.5 by one major sportsbook, and while that doesn’t guarantee a deep run, it shows the baseline expectation is higher than simply scraping into a wild-card place.
The biggest reason for the Rams becoming a clearer market leader was their trade for Myles Garrett.
Garrett, the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2023 and 2025, was traded to the Rams in June 2026 in a deal that sent Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick to the Cleveland Browns.
That’s a serious price, and it reflects how aggressively the Rams are approaching this season. Garrett adds a proven edge rusher to a defense that now has a player capable of affecting games without needing an elaborate blitz package.
A pass rusher who can pressure the quarterback one-on-one changes how an opposing offense has to call plays, particularly in January when games can swing on a few third-down snaps.
The trade also explains the movement in the odds. ESPN reported that Los Angeles shortened from +800 to +650 after the deal and then moved again, eventually reaching +550 by early August.
There’s also the obvious appeal of a Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium. The Rams wouldn’t receive a formal home-field advantage unless they actually reach the game, and their opponent would still have equal access to preparation time and facilities.
Still, avoiding a cross-country journey and playing in a familiar venue would be a minor positive if they get that far.
Buffalo, Seattle and the Chasing Pack
The Buffalo Bills remain the leading AFC name near the top of the board. Josh Allen gives Buffalo a quarterback advantage in most matchups, and that alone makes the Bills a credible Super Bowl contender before a ball has been snapped.
Buffalo has repeatedly been close enough to the top of the AFC to command respect in futures markets, but a Super Bowl bet on the Bills still depends on their ability to navigate a difficult conference.
The Baltimore Ravens are similarly priced at some sportsbooks, while Kansas City remains a team few bettors will dismiss even at longer odds. The Bills may have the talent to win the AFC, but the route is unlikely to be straightforward.
Seattle, meanwhile, has the most immediate recent evidence on its side. The Seahawks are defending champions and begin the new season having beaten the Rams in last season’s NFC Championship Game. That alone makes their current price interesting.
The Seahawks are no longer the market favourite, but their odds aren’t far behind Buffalo’s at around +1100 in several boards. They have the confidence that comes from winning the final game of the season, and they won’t need to guess what it takes to handle the pressure of a playoff run.
For the Rams, Seattle is the rival that matters most in the NFC West. A strong divisional finish could be important because winning the division offers a more reliable route to a favourable playoff seed. The difference between a first-round bye, a home playoff game and an away wild-card weekend can decide whether an otherwise strong season becomes a genuine Super Bowl run.
That is why the early Rams price should be treated as a measure of expectation, not certainty. At +550, the odds imply about a 15.4 percent chance before bookmaker margin, which still means the field is much more likely to win than Los Angeles alone.
The Road to Super Bowl LXI
The 2026 NFL regular season starts on Wednesday 9th September and ends on Sunday 10th January 2027. The Rams open their campaign in Melbourne, Australia, against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday 10 September.
The playoffs begin with Wild Card Weekend from 16th to 18th January. The divisional round follows on 23rd and 24th January, with the AFC and NFC Championship Games scheduled for 31st January.
Super Bowl LXI takes place on Sunday 14 February 2027 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, home of the Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. It’ll be broadcast in the US by ESPN, with a simulcast on ABC, and on Channel 5 in the UK, for those of you who don’t mind staying up all night to watch it!
For now, the Rams are the team everyone else is being measured against. They have Stafford, McVay, an expensive new defensive centrepiece in Myles Garrett and the prospect of playing the final at their own stadium.
Buffalo and Seattle have very credible cases of their own, but it’s easy to understand why Los Angeles has become the early ante-post favourite.
