Super Bowl prop bets: National anthem, game plays

You can bet on anything and everything for the Super Bowl. From the coin toss (tails never fails) to the Gatorade bath color (both teams feature red) and everything in between, it's a neverending propapalooza. Here's seven prop bets for Sunday's big game in Las Vegas. 

National anthem: Under 90.5 seconds (-128)

This is the lowest number I’ve ever seen for a Super Bowl anthem, and it opened at 84.5! The main reason why? Reba McEntire sang the anthem in just 83 seconds at the 1997 World Series. That was 27 years ago, and the Super Bowl is a much bigger stage (sorry, baseball fans), so it makes sense if her pacing isn’t the same. If this goes under, it would be well below the anthem average of 115.4 seconds since 2000 (Covers.com), but there’s a reason it’s such a low number and I think we could get a record-setting performance right out of the gate.

Travis Kelce: First TD scorer (+800)

The tight end’s 19-yard TD catch opened the scoring in the AFC Championship Game and in last year’s Super Bowl, his 18-yard TD grab put Kansas City on the board (after Philadelphia scored a touchdown). All eyes will be on Kelce and Taylor Swift, so expect a big game from him. Taking a shot with Kelce to win MVP (+2100) is also worth it, though it almost always goes to a quarterback (Patrick Mahomes, a two-time winner, is the favorite at +140; Brock Purdy next at +200).

Either QB to catch a pass from any player (+2400)

Prop bets are all about fun, and everyone wants to see a quarterback catch a pass in the Super Bowl. Right, Nick Foles? Purdy hasn’t caught a pass in his two years, and Mahomes has done it once, last season when a defender batted it back to him and he ran for 6 yards. But Andy Reid can be sneaky, and Las Vegas is the same place where Kansas City broke out its “Snow Globe” formation (Google it). Mahomes has done just about everything in his career except catch a designed pass. (Note: After Lamar Jackson caught his own pass in the AFC title game, you can also wager on either QB doing that on Sunday at +5000).

Christian McCaffrey 35+ rush yards in each half (+110) 

When looking at all the prop bets, this one jumped right off the page. Only 35 yards in each half for the NFL’s leading rusher? If the 49ers are to beat Kansas City, McCaffrey is going to have to lead the way. Kansas City’s elite defense is better against the pass than the run. So if McCaffrey gets around 10-12 carries each half, he should be able to make this prop a runaway winner.

Brock Purdy under passing yards, 246.5 (-110)

If McCaffrey gets 25-plus carries, that means fewer passing attempts for Purdy. He’s much more than a “game manager” as some skeptics like to say, but the final pick in the 2022 draft isn’t a bona fide star (yet). He’s been shaky at times in the playoffs, and we can’t forget the Christmas Night stand-alone game when the Ravens rattled him into four interceptions. KC allowed the fourth-fewest passing yards per game (176.5).

Travis Kelce to catch every one of his targets (+950)

Kelce went 11-for-11 in the AFC title game, and looked like a man possessed, even laying out for a diving catch. In what was a “down” regular season for him, he has looked like his super self in the postseason with 23 catches (on 27 targets) for 262 yards and three touchdowns. Catching all 11 again might be too much to ask, so maybe just throw it to him five to seven times. Thanks, guys.

Correct Score: KC 31, SF 21 (+15000)

My prediction is Kansas City 24, San Francisco 17, so why 31-21? In an episode of “Hard Knocks” last summer, then-Jets receiver Mecole Hardman (now back with KC) was asked by mentalist Oz Pearlman to give his prediction for the Super Bowl (Google it). His answer: Jets 31, San Francisco 21. At these odds, how do you not take a shot?

By Joe Manniello

joe.manniello@newsday.com@joe_manniello

Joe Manniello, an editor on the sports copy desk, has written the NFL picks column since 2015. Manniello joined Newsday in 2004. He graduated from St. John's.