We Need Sports Things to Talk About, So Let's Gamble on Football (if there is football)

In the middle of a contract dispute with the Cowboys, surely nobody would bet on Dak Prescott to win the MVP, would they?

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

While there are certainly more important things happening now than a lack of sports, crawling along in a sports-less desert has made many fans thirsty for ANYTHING to argue about.

Look no further than ESPN's documentary series "The Last Dance," chronicling Michael Jordan's final season (and really, entire career) with the Chicago Bulls. A documentary like this would normally be very popular anyway, but it has absolutely taken over the sports social media world, and drawn millions of viewers each week.

Similarly, the WNBA and NFL Draft both had their best years, in terms of viewership, in their history, and several notable players have mainstream news made waves by changing squads during NFL free agency (maybe you've heard of that Brady guy?).

The dust has not totally settled, but with the draft complete, and the NFL seemingly intent on playing games without interruption, now seems like a perfect time to start some more debates and look at a few NFL futures bets.

Odds for the Super Bowl, MVP and division winners have been updated, and you can find all that information here, along with other NFL related news. There will be more updates up until NFL starts so take the current odds with a grain of salt. For the sake of this blog, I'm going to take a look at my favorite, and least favorite picks to win divisions, and the MVP.

So, which bets are my Stone Cold Locks of The Quarantine? Find out below.

Joe & Daphne's Preview: The AFC South

   
By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) and Daphne Parello (@DaphnePup)

Daphne and I took a look at the NFC South last week, and we open this week previewing their AFC brethren. The AFC South boasts a Super Bowl contender and a bunch of teams searching for answers, as Andrew Luck's Colts hope to get over the top while Tennessee, Houston and Jacksonville just hope to avoid the Top-5 of the draft next year.

Can Indianapolis make it to Super Sunday, and which of the South's up-and-coming teams has the best chance of breaking through in 2015? Daphne and I investigate.

Long And Suite Preview: The AFC South

Andrew Luck is the best quarterback in the division. But can he stay upright long enough for the Colts to take advantage?

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

The AFC South was a joke last season. They had the worst cumulative record (24-40) of any division in football. In fact, it was the worst cumulative record of any division from any year since the 2008 NFC West (22-42).

It was a weird season. The Colts beat each of the three best teams in football (Seattle, Denver, and San Francisco), then lost to the Rams and Cardinals by a combined 59 points. The Texans went 2-14, but five of those losses came by three points or less, and they under-performed their expected record (based on point differential) by a full two wins. The Jaguars went 4-12, but three of those wins came against the other crap teams in the division (two against Houston, one against Tennessee), and the other came against Cleveland. And none of the wins were by more than a touchdown. They lost their first eight games by an average of 22.5 points. That's some world-class suck. The Titans were your generic average team. They beat the crap teams and lost to the good teams. The only really surprising result was beating the Chargers.

The division should improve this year top to bottom. The two divisions they played last year were the AFC West and NFC West, far and away the two best divisions in football. The four teams in the AFC South played the four hardest schedules in the AFC (Houston played the hardest, then Jacksonville, Indianapolis, and Tennessee). This year, they'll play the NFC East (which could under-whelm again), and AFC North (ditto), offering an easier path towards respectability.

March Mascot Melee™: The Final Four

Only in New Jersey could people be so excited for their kids to meet the Devil. But, can Lucifer make it to the finals for a potential rematch with the Angels?

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) and Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin)

We're almost home.

After four heated battled in the Elite Eight (Parts One and Two), we are left with the four baddest mascots in American professional sports. Only the NBA bracket champion Magic, MLB bracket champion Angels, NFL bracket champion Titans and NHL bracket champion Devils remain.

Did the actual NCAA tournament (which this is unceremoniously modeled after) end on Monday? Yes. Are we like, a week late? Yes. Do we care? Not really. We're really lazy. And by "we" I mean Jeremy.

Here's a look back at our bracket to see how we got here.