A months-long wait for the start of the 2023 NFL season ends this week. The defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (-6.5 at most mobile sportsbooks) host the Detroit Lions Thursday night in the NFL season opener.
For fans, the return of the NFL season is reason to rejoice. It’s also time for celebration by legal sports betting operators, which rely heavily on football season for revenue.
During the countdown to Thursday’s opener and the full slate of games on Sunday, Sports Handle is tracking all of the major football-related news surrounding the betting industry through a series of daily live blogs.
Tuesday (4:20 p.m.) Tale of the tape
With kickoff now almost 48 hours away, sportsbooks are constantly updating ticket and handle percentages of various wager types. As of the start of the business day, here was the tale of the tape for BetRivers and FanDuel for comparable wager types:
BetRivers Wager Type FanDuel
Kansas City (12.7%). % of Tickets, SuperBowl futures Philadelphia (14%)
Philadelphia (15.2%) % of Handle, Super Bowl futures Philadelphia (19%)
Bijan Robinson (21.1%) % of Tickets, Offensive Rookie of the Year Anthony Richardson (18%)
Kansas City (12.7%) Top 5 % of Tickets, Super Bowl futures Philadelphia (14%)
Philadelphia (10.7%) Kansas City (10%)
Buffalo (10.4%) Cincinnati (10%)
Cincinnati (10.2%) N.Y. Jets (8%)
San Francisco (9.5%) Buffalo (7%)
Tuesday (3 p.m.) Chiefs-Lions line movement
The first real buzz of Week 1 wagering has started with Thursday night’s line moving in Detroit’s direction after Chiefs coach Andy Reid said All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce is questionable after hyperextending his knee during Wednesday’s practice. The line has moved a half-point in the past hour, to Kansas City -6, at most sportsbooks, while the total has slid as low as 52.5 points at some books and 53.5 at others.
Kelce, an eight-time All-Pro, led the Chiefs with 110 receptions for 1,338 yards and 12 touchdowns last season as Patrick Mahomes’ go-to target. Kelce has had seven consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and five straight with at least 90 receptions while topping 100 on three occasions.
Chiefs’ HC Andy Reid told reporters that Travis Kelce hyper-extended his knee at practice today and his status for Thursday night’s opener vs the Lions is uncertain.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 5, 2023
Tuesday (2 p.m.) PENN’s RG contest
PENN Entertainment, which is in the process of rebranding its Barstool Sportsbook platform to ESPN BET, announced that it will be holding a responsible gambling education contest in which the grand prize is a seven-day trip for two on Norwegian Cruise Lines.
The contest is tied to the American Gaming Association marking 25 years of promoting responsible gambling across all wagering disciplines. PENN’s landing page instructs customers to watch a 25-second PSA that serves as a reminder help for responsible gambling is available in all 50 states and across Canada. Then, if a person answers one trivia question correctly, they are entered into a drawing for the aforementioned cruise.
Tuesday (12:45 p.m.): Foxx back for BetMGM
Would it really be “Any Given Sunday” for sports wagering without Jamie Foxx?
BetMGM has again enlisted the Academy Award winner to headline its ad campaign as the NFL’s opening kickoff draws near. The two commercial spots will make their debuts during Week 1 of the NFL season and promote BetMGM’s enhanced offer for new bettors: the opportunity to wager up to $1,500 on their first bet and receive a payback in bonus bets for a losing wager.
Both spots were filmed in Las Vegas. The first ad, “Doing It Live,” features Foxx playing piano at NoMad Library within Park MGM while describing various types of wagers as sports action unfolds around him. Meanwhile, “The Game” features Foxx walking through Park MGM showcasing the variety of wager types available on the BetMGM app.
Fellow BetMGM ambassador and hockey great Wayne Gretzky makes a cameo in “The Game” before Foxx makes his way to a BetMGM-branded race car, a nod to the highly anticipated Formula 1 race that will take place on the Las Vegas Strip in November.
“Love and respect to my BetMGM family,” said Foxx. “It means a lot to be rocking with such a great brand year after year. And you know we had a good time filming in Vegas!”
Tuesday (11:30 a.m.): Gronk on ‘Up & Adams’
FanDuel announced Tuesday that New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel, and four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski will be regular weekly guests on FanDuel TV’s Up & Adams for Season 2.
Adams, who jumped to FanDuel TV from NFL Network last year, will celebrate her show’s one-year anniversary Wednesday. The program, which airs weekdays at 11 a.m. EDT, will also stream live on YouTube and be available on mobile devices, as FanDuel recently launched a streaming service. Up & Adams will feature Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and The Ringer‘s Bill Simmons as Week 1 guests.
“Here we go! Excited to grow the Up & Adams family, and I couldn’t be more grateful to my team and everyone at FanDuel for working so hard to bring the show to another level for Season 2.” Adams said in a press release. “Bringing it to YouTube is a dream and I can’t wait for sports fans to get to interact with us LIVE in the comments. More fun to come — stay tuned!”
Samuel and Jones will appear live on Tuesdays throughout the season, along with other guests and former NFL safety Darius Butler. Adams and Gronkowski were part of FanDuel’s Super Bowl ad campaign centered on Gronkowski’s “Kick of Destiny” for Super Bowl LVII, in which the former tight end attempted a field goal for $10 million that was split among bettors who wagered $5 or more on the kick. Wednesday will be “GronkDay,” as the gregarious four-time All-Pro will be on Up & Adams for a full hour.
“The people better get ready because I have some hot takes I am ready to unload this year.” Gronkowski said. “But you’ll have to tune in every Wednesday to hear them first!”
Missed Monday’s live blog? Do not fear; just click here!
