No doubt that the perception at least is the Green Bay Packers have been hurt by what transpired with Brett Favre. Without the Favre factor, however, this was a team that was still widely recognized among the favorites to win in their respective conference. They demonstrated this during Week 1 of the 2008 NFL season by beating what was supposed to be a very solid Minnesota Vikings team.
BetOnline.com like most online gambling sites had the Packers with single digit odds earlier this year (even after Favre announced his retirement). By August 18, 2008, the Green Bay Packers odds of winning the 2009 Super Bowl were listed at +2500 for a payout potential of $2500 with every $100 bet. Their odds of winning the NFC Conference were at +1200.
Following their win against Minnesota, the Green Bay Packers odds were expected to dip to around +1500, still a payout potential of $1500 for every $100 bet.
If you want to be really creative, BetOnline.com believes that the w listed with odds of
Packers were expected by bookies to win less than 8 ½ regular season games in 2008. They have a line of -130 on the under and an even line on the over.
"Rodgers will play a safer style, but won't be nearly as dynamic," writes Bruce Ciskie of the AOL Fan House.
Running backs, linebackers and receivers are all still very much solid, Ciskie believes.
Favre's loss is huge, but the Packers are well-stocked. General manager Ted Thompson has focused on building this football team to be a 53-man machine, instead of one that relies on the success or failure of one guy. There is still work to be done, but this team appears to have what it takes to be a Super Bowl contender. If Rodgers falters, things could get messy with two rookie backups. Luckily, I'm not being asked to predict who will stay healthy and who will get hurt.
Reality check here: The Packers did have excellent value at least to win the NFC Championship at +1200 odds early on for a payout potential of $1200 for every $100 bet. With everyone so down on the Giants, only Dallas looks like a clear cut contender early on in the conference. Of course, that will change soon as we are bound to witness a few surprises emerge once we get deeper into the season.
Here were your odds to win the 2009 NFC Championship courtesy of BetOnline.com early in the season. Updated odds can be found on the BetOnline.com website here :
DALLAS COWBOYS
+180
GREEN BAY PACKERS
+1200
NEW YORK GIANTS
+925
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
+1100
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
+1000
CHICAGO BEARS
+1600
MINNESOTA VIKINGS
+900
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
+1000
ARIZONA CARDINALS
+1500
WASHINGTON REDSKINS
+1500
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS
+1200
ST. LOUIS RAMS
+2400
CAROLINA PANTHERS
+1300
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
+2400
DETROIT LIONS
+2300
ATLANTA FALCONS
+7000
