In the realm of sports betting, football is king. A perfect example of this is NFL Draft betting.
The annual spring event, in which pro teams bolster their rosters with the best available talents from the college ranks, has become big business for sportsbooks and keeps that NFL action coming even in the middle of the offseason.
With the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft set to begin on Thursday, April 27, we teach you how to bet on the draft, break down some betting tips to help you turn a profit when the picks come in, and run down the most popular ways to wager on the NFL Draft.
NFL Draft bet types
There are a handful of staples on the NFL Draft betting board, but bookmakers get more and more creative every spring with the different types of NFL Draft odds. These are the most common ways to wager on the NFL Draft.
Pick number props
Who will be the player selection No. 1 overall? Who will be the No. 2 or No. 3 pick? These types of NFL Draft props are among the most common, with bookies setting odds on a wide field of top players and pricing them according to their draft stock.
Pick position Over/Under
Oddsmakers set a player’s estimated pick position in the draft and bettors can wager on whether that player will be selected Over that number or Under that number. For example, if a player has an Over/Under draft position of 5.5, a bet on the Over expects them to be selected No. 6 or higher while a bet on the Under is banking on a pick of No. 5 or lower.
Player head-to-head props
Head-to-head props match two players close in expected draft position against each other and bettors can select which player will go first in the draft. An odds set is assigned to each matchup, based on both players’ probability and incoming betting action.
Position props
There are a couple of different position-based props when betting on the NFL Draft. One is wagering on the first player of that position to be selected, such as the first receiver taken in the draft. The other form of position props is an Over/Under total for the total number of players at that position to be selected in the round, such as Over/Under 13.5 defensive players picked in Round 1.
School and conference props
School and conference props also have various forms for betting on the NFL Draft. Oddsmakers will set an Over/Under total of expected players selected from a particular school or conference in a given round, such as the total number of Alabama players taken in Round 1: Over/Under 5.5.
Head-to-head school and conference props are also available, pitting two schools or conferences against each other and allowing bettors to select which one will boast the most draft picks in that round. These can sometimes have a handicap involved as well. For example, DraftKings Sportsbook typically has odds on which conference will have the most Round 1 picks: Big Ten (-1.5) or ACC (+1.5)? Here, the Big Ten would need to have two or more players selected in Round 1 as compared to the ACC to cover the -1.5 spread.
