KANSAS CITY, Missouri -- April 27th, 2023: It's official: the Carolina Panthers have selected Alabama quarterback Bryce Young with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft Thursday night. In recent weeks, the worldwide betting market has been increasingly convinced that the Panthers would select Young. The odds for Young to be selected first increased steadily from -250 on April 11th, to -2,000 Thursday morning, and finally to -5,000 in the hours leading up to the draft. After the Chicago Bears traded the first overall pick to the Panthers in March, the betting markets initially fluctuated, with Ohio State QB, CJ Stroud, becoming a minus-money favorite for several weeks following the deal.
On March 10th, within hours of the Panthers' acquisition of the pick, Bryce Young, who had been -190, lost his status as the favorite to go number 1 overall, quickly dropping to being a +260 underdog to hear his name first. This trend reversed course in the following weeks, and Young became the favorite again in early April. By April 17th, the market had priced it as over 90% likely that Young would go first. For his part, Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud saw his odds shift rapidly after the trade, going from +400 the day before the Panthers acquired the pick to a -285 favorite immediately afterward, ultimately settling at 12/1 on the afternoon of the draft.
Other contenders for the top pick included Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson and Kentucky quarterback Will Levis. Richardson's odds began at +2500 and peaked at +350 in mid-March, one week after the Panthers/Bears trade. On the day of the draft, Richardson's odds stood at 100/1. Kentucky's Levis opened as the third favorite at 5/1 before climbing to 50/1 by early April. In recent days, a Reddit post from an unknown user sparked a surge of betting activity on Levis to be the first selected, with his odds moving from 40-1 to 4-1 on Tuesday at DraftKings, as a result of the claim that Levis was "telling friends and family Carolina will, in fact, take him on Thursday."
Next up, we have more bets to cash with the Houston Texans on the clock to make the #2 selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. As of 7PM Thursday, Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson had been installed as a -250 favorite to go second. As late as Thursday morning, the market for the #2 selection was wide open, with Anderson, along with Will Levis, CJ Stroud, and Texas Tech edge rusher Tyree Wilson, all having nearly the same odds between +200 and +300.
The road to the 2023 NFL Draft has been an engaging one for all involved, with trades, shifting odds, and plenty of speculation. With Bryce Young now secured as the definitive #1 pick, the stage is set for a thrilling NFL season ahead, as fans and bettors alike eagerly await the impact these talented newcomers will have on the league. The Rookie of the Year odds, as of Thursday at 7PM ET, have Texas RB Bijan Robinson as the favorite at +450, followed by Bryce Young at +500, and CJ Stroud at +650, among others. Let's see how the odds shift as the rest of the 2023 class of NFL rookies hear their names and hug their families.