We made it!
Draft day is finally here and by the time the day is over, we will know exactly what our Detroit Lions decided to do with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
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On Wednesday, we reported that Aidan Hutchinson (-300 on Draft Kings) was the huge favorite to be selected at No. 2 but those odds took a sharp shift overnight.
As it currently stands, as of 7:30 a.m. ET, Hutchinson is still the favorite at (-150) but Kayvon Thibodeaux has been coming like a freight train and he is now listed at +120 to be selected second overall in tonight’s first round.
Other odds to be the No. 2 overall pick:
Travon Walker (+950)
Jermaine Johnson (+1000)
Ahmad Gardner (+2500)
Malik Willis (+5000)
Nation, it is almost time! Who do you think the Lions will select with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft?
Books on NFL draft: ‘I don’t see how we’re going to win on this’
After a flood of sharp money hit the NFL draft betting market, there was a new favorite to go No. 1 overall by Monday morning. Georgia defensive end Travon Walker was in, and Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was out.
The surprise move at the top spot showed why so many bookmakers despise the exercise of posting fast-moving draft numbers. For the guys behind the counter who are accustomed to winning most of the time, the draft can feel like a no-win proposition.
“It’s my least favorite event to book,” Westgate SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay said. “It’s just not a favorable event for the bookmakers. I don’t see how we’re going to win on this.”
Kornegay was behind the curve, which is how he wanted it. The Westgate did not post any draft props until Monday afternoon, after Walker and Hutchinson traded places. Hutchinson was the odds-on favorite at most books — as high as -250 — for about a month, but the SuperBook opened Walker -185 to be the first player picked Thursday.
While books such as DraftKings, FanDuel and William Hill aggressively set the market by posting several early props, Circa Sports played the waiting game and also opened a limited menu on Monday.
“I didn’t want to book the draft,” Circa owner Derek Stevens said between drags on a cigarette. “How do you get excited from a bookmaking perspective when the best you can do is a small loss? So the worst you can do is get destroyed.”
