A popular futures bet for every Super Bowl is who will win the Super Bowl MVP award. It’s been an award dominated by the quarterback position with 34 of the first 59 Super Bowls awarding a quarterback with the MVP.
But does a matchup like Seattle Seahawks vs. New England Patriots in Super Bowl 60 feel like a quarterback duel, or is this the right year to back a non-quarterback position?Â
Best Super Bowl MVP Bets for Patriots vs. Seahawks
While Sam Darnold (+125 at Bovada) would be the preferable quarterback choice for Super Bowl MVP over Drake Maye with the postseason he’s had to this point, we’re going to explain why our best bets for Super Bowl MVP are three non-quarterbacks: Seattle wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle wideout Rashid Shaheed, and New England corner Christian Gonzalez.
Super Bowl MVP: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (+550) at Bovada
For a wide receiver to win Super Bowl MVP instead of the quarterback, you usually need a low-scoring game where the quarterback struggles throwing to other receivers, doesn’t throw many touchdowns, and the wide receiver has some serious clout and ability to go over 100 yards.
This matchup should check every box, as Sam Darnold’s perceived shakiness is the No. 1 reason people have to not fully back Seattle to win this game. Meanwhile, Jaxon Smith-Njigba had a fantastic year with 1,793 receiving yards, a full 1,200 more yards than any other Seattle receiver. They run the offense through him, so there’s a good chance he can finish this game with a high percentage of Darnold’s total yards, and don’t discount Darnold throwing a pick or two against a talented defense he’s unfamiliar with.
JSN is a favorite to win Offensive Player of the Year, so the media likes him, and he’s had over 70 yards in all but two games this year, so the offense does a fantastic job of finding ways to get him open every week. It wouldn’t be surprising at all to see him have a dominant game and really lift Darnold’s stat line a great deal to win MVP.
Super Bowl MVP: Rashid Shaheed (+4000) at BetOnline
A trade from New Orleans during the season, Rashid Shaheed has made his biggest contributions on special teams for the Seahawks. In half a season with the team, he’s already scored 3 return touchdowns. Devin Hester type of stuff. One was a massive punt return touchdown against the Rams in Week 16, the game that led to the No. 1 seed. Another was a kickoff return to start the team’s 41-6 demolition of the 49ers in the playoffs.
But Shaheed also had a 51-yard catch against the Rams in the NFC Championship Game, so he still has deep-ball threat in his bag of tricks too, and don’t be surprised if the Seahawks can scheme him up one big play on offense while the Patriots try to limit Jaxon Smith-Njigba the best they can.
Shaheed and New England’s Marcus Jones will be fighting over the right to be the first punt return touchdown in Super Bowl history, something we’re still waiting to see in the 60th edition of this game.Â
So, imagine a scenario where Shaheed has a deep catch and finishes with 50-to-80 receiving yards, and he has a huge return touchdown on special teams. That could be enough as a dual-threat weapon to win Super Bowl MVP in a game expected to be on the lower side of scoring and without stellar quarterback play.
Super Bowl MVP: Christian Gonzalez (+10000) at Bovada
Defenders can win Super Bowl MVP too, though the media has repeatedly snubbed some excellent defensive back performances that were deserving of the award for the Patriots, including Ty Law (2001), Rodney Harrison (2004), Malcolm Butler (2014), and Stephon Gilmore (2018).
But Drake Maye doesn’t yet have the clout of a Tom Brady, and with the way he’s played in the playoffs to this point, with 6 fumbles and 15 sacks, he doesn’t look ready (or even healthy with a shoulder injury to monitor) to have a big game against the No. 1 scoring defense in this one. He’s going to be a game manager.
But the player who can draw the toughest assignment and steal the show is corner Christian Gonzalez, who is allowing 40.7% completions and 4.7 yards per target this postseason. He had his first interception of 2025 in the AFC Championship Game.
Imagine the scenario where Gonzalez shadows Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the hottest receiver in the league this year, and he holds him to one of his worst games of the season. Then, on top of that, he makes a huge interception, possibly even for a touchdown, as we saw Ty Law do to the Rams in 2001. That should be more than enough to get Super Bowl MVP, provided the Patriots get the low-scoring win that they’ll likely need, as their quarterback doesn’t look ready to win a shootout here.
But in a game where we’re not expecting great quarterback play, it’s a top player like Gonzalez who can be in the perfect position to steal this one. Marcus Jones (+12500 at Bovada) is also a great value pick for the Patriots as he can have an impact on punts and also has a pick-six against Houston this postseason. But he’s not the one expected to draw the JSN assignment like Gonzalez should. That’s the difference.
Your Super Sunday MVP Gameplan
For Super Bowl 60, the Super Bowl MVP award is one of the best futures markets to bet on, especially in a matchup like this where there’s real value on the non-quarterback players like Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Rashid Shaheed, Christian Gonzalez, and Marcus Jones.
With varying odds on this market, it is best to sign up with different offshore sportsbooks and price shop for the best odds for the players you want to bet on at reputable oddsmakers like Bovada and BetOnline.Â
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