Forget everything you thought you knew about the Will Levis’ Reddit drama, Will Anderson’s potential and the Houston Texans’ insistence they weren’t going to take a quarterback No. 2 overall.
C.J. Stroud’s last-minute, meteoric rise to heavy favorite to become the second player off the board at the NFL Draft might be one of the most absurd odds shifts we’ll see for quite some time.
An hour before the NFL Draft was slated to begin, Stroud was considered a likely candidate to see his name fall significantly. Anderson was the clear favorite to go No. 2 on Thursday morning with odds set at -350.
An hour before the draft, Stroud was -140 to go No. 2. Less than 30 minutes later those odds swung wildly toward the Ohio State quarterback. When the draft broadcast began, Stroud was -2400 (bet $2,400 to win $100) to go No. 2 overall.
Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud is now the overwhelming favorite to be the No. 2 pick at sportsbooks.
He's currently -2400 at @DKSportsbook; he was -140 a mere 25 minutes ago
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) April 27, 2023
So what happened? Word could have leaked out that Stroud was going to Houston. Or bettors decided they knew better than oddsmakers and poured a bunch of money on Stroud when his odds yielded a much higher return. Or it was just sheer last-second panic from bookmakers looking to minimize risk.
We may not know for sure until the dust settles. And as the draft began, there was plenty of dust still kicking up.
Last 24 hours, it has felt like the #Texans’ plan was to take Will Anderson at 2, then come back and get Stroud so long as the board was falling their way. Seems like the board isn’t falling their way with the #Titans making calls. Either Houston takes the QB at 2 or loses him. https://t.co/yPUCjFgTUG
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) April 27, 2023
CJ Stroud -380, -370, -400 to go No. 2 at DK, FD, and MGM.
This is shades of Trey Lance to No. 3 two years ago.
Stroud is going No. 2.
— Matthew Freedman (@MattFtheOracle) April 27, 2023
I'm fascinated to see what the Texans say after they take C.J. Stroud second overall. From what I understand, he was not the second-ranked QB on the front office's board — that was Will Levis.
Very much seems to me like ownership stepped in and took over the controls.
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) April 27, 2023
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