Ravens are middle-of-the-pack favorites to hoist the Super Bowl

With only two teams remaining, fans are already looking far ahead into the future. But just how far?

February 5th, 2017 to be exact. The date for Super Bowl LI.

In recently released NFL futures bets, the Ravens are named as 30-1 favorites to win next year's championship. That puts them in the company of the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills, who are both favored 30-1 as well. In comparison, the Seahawks, Patriots, and Steelers lead the pack at 8-1 odds, while the Browns are the extreme deviate team with a meager 200-1 chance to win to coveted trophy. This puts the Ravens roughly in the middle of the pack to win the Super Bowl.

While these are gambling odds, and not mathematical odds, Vegas futures give us a good idea of how the populace feels about the outlook for next season. The Ravens were listed high on these same lists last year, but ultimately failed to be the trendy Super Bowl pick everyone thought they were. While I'm not a believer in superstitions or anything, there's an eerie correlation with the Ravens doing poorly when being the favored team.

It's nice to be an underdog again.