Sportsbooks bump Raiders’ odds after trade for Antonio Brown

The Raiders’ acquisition of wide receiver Antonio Brown on Saturday night immediately improved Oakland’s odds to win the Super Bowl. But Las Vegas oddsmakers still don’t expect the Raiders to improve much in the standings next season.

“All they did was pay Brown ($50.125) million to probably win a game or two more than they won last year,” Westgate sportsbook manager Ed Salmons said.

Oakland went 4-12 last season and finished last in the AFC West.

“They have no chance to compete against the Chiefs, who are the class of the league, and the Chargers are a solid team,” Salmons said. “The Raiders are probably still not as good as Denver.”

A Westgate bettor placed $500 wagers Saturday afternoon on the Raiders to win Super Bowl LIV at 100-1 and to win the AFC championship at 50-1.

After the trade, the Westgate moved Oakland’s odds to 80-1 to win the Super Bowl and 40-1 to win the AFC.

MGM Resorts moved the Raiders’ Super Bowl odds from 80-1 to 60-1 and Caesars Entertainment moved them from 75-1 to 50-1.

Oakland’s Super Bowl odds are 75-1 and its AFC odds 35-1 at William Hill, which always takes heavy action on the Raiders at its Northern Nevada books.

“We lose huge with them just because the odds are so high to begin with and the Raiders are a popular team,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich said. “We’ve got 80 books in the north. We get drowned in Oakland (money).”

Bogdanovich said the acquisition of Brown in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers will have a negligible impact on the Raiders next season.

“If it’s just him alone, it’s minimal,” he said. “But they are positioned well in the draft, so they could make a leap.”

Sunset Station sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said he thinks the deal was made more for the team’s move to Las Vegas in 2020.

“I don’t think it moves the needle much for the Raiders next season,” he said. “They did need a No. 1 wideout, no question about it. But he’s not going to have Ben Roethlisberger throwing to him or JuJu Smith-Shuster on the other side.

“It’ll be cool for the Las Vegas Raiders, knowing they’ve got a marquee player like Brown coming here.”

On the flip side of the trade, Pittsburgh’s Super Bowl odds moved from 20-1 to 25-1 at the Westgate and they’re tied with the Ravens and Browns as the 12-1 sixth choice to win the AFC. But Salmons thinks the loss of Brown will actually benefit the Steelers.

“I think it helps them because he was a cancer and they had to cut it out and they did,” he said. “The Steelers are one of the smartest teams out there. The biggest problem is they play in the same conference as the Patriots.”

Oakland remains in the NFL’s bottom 10 teams in Super Bowl odds at the Westgate, tied with the Titans, Jets and Buccaneers at 80-1. The Cardinals are the longest shot, at 200-1, with the Bills, Bengals, Dolphins, Lions and Redskins at 100-1.

Aside from the two $500 bets placed Saturday on Oakland, Salmons said there’s been virtually no action on the Raiders at the Westgate.

“The Raiders have zero public support right now,” he said. “Even though they’re moving here, no one (cares) because they stink.

“If the Knights were the worst team in hockey, they’d bet against them. But they’re good, so they bet on them and they like them.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.