The Baltimore Ravens shocked the world by winning every playoff game as an underdog last year, will the underdog win again?
The Seattle Seahawks may be the underdog in Super Bowl XLVIII, but they are certainly more than capable of toppling the Denver Broncos. In fact, in terms of the odds, they are one of the strongest; only two other dogs in Super Bowl history have had lines lower than the Seahawks’ current 2.5-point spread.
So how will the underdog Seahawks do? Maybe history holds the answer.
Here’s a list of the previous 47 Super Bowls, the line for each game, and whether or not the underdog managed to cover the spread.
[sc:SuperBowl48 ]List of all Super Bowl lines and underdogs
| YEAR | VENUE | MATCH-UP | LINE | WINNER | DOG ATS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Los Angeles | Green Bay vs Kansas City | KC (+14) | GB, 35-10 | LOSS |
| 1968 | Miami | Green Bay vs Oakland | OAK (+13.5) | GB, 33-14 | LOSS |
| 1969 | Miami | NY Jets vs Baltimore | NYJ (+18) | NYJ, 16-7 | WIN |
| 1970 | New Orleans | Kansas City vs Minnesota | KC (+12) | KC, 23-7 | WIN |
| 1971 | New Orleans | Baltimore vs Dallas | DAL (+2.5) | BAL, 16-13 | LOSS |
| 1972 | Miami | Dallas vs Miami | MIA (+6) | DAL, 24-3 | LOSS |
| 1973 | New Orleans | Miami vs Washington | WSH (+1) | MIA, 14-7 | LOSS |
| 1974 | Los Angeles | Miami vs Minnesota | MIN (+6.5) | MIA, 24-7 | LOSS |
| 1975 | Houston | Pittsburgh vs Minnesota | MIN (+3) | PIT, 16-6 | LOSS |
| 1976 | Miami | Pittsburgh vs Dallas | DAL (+7) | PIT, 21-17 | WIN |
| 1977 | Pasadena | Oakland vs Minnesota | MIN (+4) | OAK, 34-14 | LOSS |
| 1978 | New Orleans | Dallas vs Denver | DEN (+6) | DAL, 27-10 | LOSS |
| 1979 | Miami | Pittsburgh vs Dallas | DAL (+3.5) | PIT, 35-31 | LOSS |
| 1980 | Pasadena, CA | Pittsburgh vs LA Rams | LA (+10.5) | PIT, 31-19 | LOSS |
| 1981 | New Orleans | Oakland vs Philadelphia | OAK (+3) | OAK, 27-10 | WIN |
| 1982 | Pontiac, MI | San Francisco vs Cincinnati | CIN (+1) | SF, 26-21 | LOSS |
| 1983 | Pasadena | Washington vs Miami | WSH (+3) | WSH, 27-17 | WIN |
| 1984 | Tampa, FL | LA Raiders vs Washington | LA (+3) | LA, 38-9 | WIN |
| 1985 | Stanford, CA | San Francisco vs Miami | MIA (+3.5) | SF, 38-16 | LOSS |
| 1986 | New Orleans | Chicago vs New England | NE (+10) | CHI, 46-10 | LOSS |
| 1987 | Pasadena | NY Giants vs Denver | DEN (+9.5) | NY, 39-20 | LOSS |
| 1988 | San Diego | Washington vs Denver | WSH (+3) | WSH, 42-10 | WIN |
| 1989 | Miami | San Francisco vs Cincinnati | CIN (+7) | SF, 20-16 | WIN |
| 1990 | New Orleans | San Francisco vs Denver | DEN (+12) | SF, 55-10 | LOSS |
| 1991 | Tampa | NY Giants vs Buffalo | NYG (+7) | NYG, 20-19 | WIN |
| 1992 | Minnesota | Washington vs Buffalo | BUF (+7) | WSH, 37-24 | LOSS |
| 1993 | Pasadena | Dallas vs Buffalo | BUF (+6.5) | DAL, 52-17 | LOSS |
| 1994 | Atlanta | Dallas vs Buffalo | BUF (+10.5) | DAL, 30-13 | LOSS |
| 1995 | Miami | San Francisco vs San Diego | SD (+18.5) | SF, 49-26 | LOSS |
| 1996 | Tempe, AZ | Dallas vs Pittsburgh | PIT (+13.5) | DAL, 27-17 | WIN |
| 1997 | New Orleans | Green Bay vs New England | NE (+14) | GB, 35-21 | PUSH |
| 1998 | San Diego | Denver vs Green Bay | DEN (+11) | DEN, 31-24 | WIN |
| 1999 | Miami | Denver vs Atlanta | ATL (+7.5) | DEN, 34-19 | LOSS |
| 2000 | Atlanta | St. Louis vs Tennessee | TEN (+7) | STL, 23-16 | PUSH |
| 2001 | Tampa | Baltimore vs NY Giants | NYG (+3) | BAL, 34-7 | LOSS |
| 2002 | New Orleans | New England vs St. Louis | NE (+14) | NE, 20-17 | WIN |
| 2003 | San Diego | Tampa Bay vs Oakland | TB (+4) | TB, 48-21 | WIN |
| 2004 | Houston | New England vs Carolina | CAR (+7) | NE, 32-29 | WIN |
| 2005 | Jacksonville | New England vs Philadelphia | PHI (+7) | NE, 24-21 | WIN |
| 2006 | Detroit | Pittsburgh vs Seattle | SEA (+4) | PIT, 21-10 | LOSS |
| 2007 | Miami | Indianapolis vs Chicago | CHI (+7) | IND, 29-17 | LOSS |
| 2008 | Glendale, AZ | NY Giants vs New England | NYG (+12) | NYG, 17-14 | WIN |
| 2009 | Tampa | Pittsburgh vs Arizona | AZ (+7) | PIT, 27-23 | WIN |
| 2010 | Miami | New Orleans vs Indianapolis | NO (+5) | NO, 31-17 | WIN |
| 2011 | Arlington, TX | Green Bay vs Pittsburgh | PIT (+3) | GB, 31-25 | LOSS |
| 2012 | Indianapolis | NY Giants vs New England | NYG (+2.5) | NYG, 21-17 | WIN |
| 2013 | New Orleans | San Francisco vs Baltimore | BAL (+4.5) | BAL, 34-31 | WIN |
| 2014 | NY/NJ | Denver vs Seattle | SEA (+2.5) | ? | ? |
Super Bowl favorites have historically won against the spread
The favorites have won 33 of the 47 Super Bowls, a 70% winning percentage. Of those 33 winning favorites, eight failed to cover the spread (two due to a tie/”push”). The favorites are 25-20-2 ATS in all-time in the Super Bowl.
The underdogs’ Super Bowl record is a less impressive 14-33 SU and 20-25-2 ATS. However, their record over the last decade or so has been much more favorable.
Underdogs have played well in the Super Bowl since 2002
The betting underdogs have won five of the last 6 Super Bowls straight up. Furthermore, since 2002, the underdog has covered 9 of the last 12 Super Bowls. The losing underdog has only covered six times in Super Bowl history, but three of those instances came within the last dozen years.
With the line currently at 2.5 points, will you be betting on the favored Denver Broncos or the dominating Seattle Seahawks defense? Bet on the Super Bowl now.
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