The first round of the 2024 NFL draft is just hours away and a shift in betting odds might tip the Kansas City Chiefs' draft plans on Thursday evening.
It's not hard to identify the biggest team needs for the Chiefs heading into the draft. They've neglected their offense in the draft during Brett Veach's tenure as general manager, with a single top-50 draft selection used on offensive talent since 2018. There's a clear position favored in the first round for Kansas City since the conclusion of the 2023 NFL season and Super Bowl LVIII. With less than 24 hours to go, that has now changed in favor of another position on the offensive side of the ball.
Betting odds take a dramatic shift for the position of Kansas City's first-round pick
If you'll recall from our story earlier this week, as of 3:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday, April 23, BetMGM (-120) and DraftKings (-105) odds for the position of the first player drafted by the Chiefs strongly favored the wide receiver position. As of 10:00 a.m. CT on Thursday, April 25, the odds for both sportsbooks have taken a dramatic shift to an entirely different position.
BetMGM now lists offensive lineman as the favorite for the first position selected by Kansas City at -125, while the wide receiver position is listed at +125 ($100 bet wins $125). The same goes for DraftKings, who now lists offensive lineman as the favorite at -120, while wide receiver has shifted to +120.
So, what exactly does this mean? It could simply be a reflection of the bettors. If too much money came in on the Chiefs taking the offensive line position, the oddsmakers would essentially be giving away free money. Shifting of odds can reflect that they're more worried about losing money than being right.
It could also mean that the oddsmakers have a good read on what Kansas City plans to do in the first round. Brett Veach all but laid out his plans during his pre-draft press conference, indicating that both wide receiver and offensive tackle were options, and that cornerback and defensive line could potentially be fallback plans. Those two defensive positions are the third- and fourth-best odds for Kansas City at both BetMGM and DraftKings, respectively.
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