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USATSI

It used to be that the only time oddsmakers would produce player props was for the actual Super Bowl. There wasn't enough demand for it back in the pre-Internet days, much less five years ago. There also wasn't nearly as much data available to the general public as there is now.

The Internet, baby. Sometimes it can be used for good.

Sometime after the dawn of Daily Fantasy Sports, people started getting interested in player props. The oddsmakers gladly obliged, providing lines in mass numbers. Of course, Fantasy Football enthusiasts noticed and began looking for edges to take advantage of.

The Super Bowl isn't exactly the best place to try and find huge edges to back with your hard-earned dough, mostly because the oddsmakers want to produce a lot of lines that will get a lot of money on both sides so they can't possibly lose out on any profit. But then again, this is the last NFL game until September. It's our last chance to connect with pro football. We shouldn't waste it.

Here are the top props for your consideration from Super Bowl LVII.

Note: Dave has been doing a weekly Player Prop show with SportsLine sharps Sia Nejad, Alex "Propstarz" Selesnick and Jonathan "The Coach" Coachman for the past two years. Their final show (until September) will be streamed live on YouTube on Friday Feb. 9 at 4 p.m. ET and available on demand anytime after.

My favorite Super Bowl prop

Jalen Hurts over 10.5 rush attempts (-101)

  • LAST GAME: Hurts had 10 designed run and a scramble for a total of 11 rush attempts ... through the first three quarters of the game.
  • GAME BEFORE THAT: Hurts had nine designed runs, eight of which came in the first half. They went into halftime up 28-0.
  • FIRST 14 GAMES: Hurts had 11-plus carries in half of them (7), and all but two of those were one-score games. In fact, Hurts has been under 11 rushes in two one-score games this year: Week 18 (his first game back from injury when the Eagles were taking it easy on him), and the game they lost against Washington when he inexplicably had six carries.
  • CHIEFS: Only Josh Allen and Joe Burrow had 11-plus carries in a regular-season game against Kansas City, but the Chiefs didn't see a lot of established running quarterbacks outside of Kyler Murray, who had eight rushes in Week 1.
  • CHIEFS: Give up 4.7 yards per carry against all read-option runs, but that average spikes to a nice 6.9 yards per carry when it's a quarterback running the ball.

Being a dual-threat quarterback is what made Hurts an MVP candidate before his shoulder injury. It's a part of who he is as a player. The Chiefs know they must be prepared to defend his rushing ability but Philly's deep receiving corps should force Andy Reid's safeties to play back. It's just another factor for why the Eagles should run the ball plenty, with Hurts handling much of the work.

More Hurts props

Jalen Hurts anytime rushing/receiving TD (+109) Why would this be at plus odds? He's scored a rushing touchdown in all but six games this season. During the regular season, the Chiefs allowed eight touchdowns on 18 attempts inside of five yards and four touchdowns on five attempts from the 1-yard line.

Jalen Hurts TWO anytime rushing/receiving TDs (+575) These odds are longer but it's worth a sprinkle in the event the Eagles' offense is completely dominant.

Jalen Hurts under 31.5 pass attempts (-125) This is a good one to take if you think the Eagles are going to win handily. Hurts has been under 32 pass attempts in all but six games this season, but under in 9 of 11 games the Eagles won by 7-plus points. Just note this math changes if the oddsmakers lower the attempts to 30.5 since he has a pair of games this year with exactly 31 attempts (both blowout wins by Philly).

Next-best Super Bowl prop

Kenneth Gainwell over 34.5 rushing/receiving yards (-115)

  • GAINWELL: Has a steady role as a passing downs back for Philadelphia. He's had at least six touches in four of his past five games and has played anywhere from 25% to 42% of the snaps in each of his past six. Those numbers aren't huge, but neither is the total in question.
  • GAINWELL: Has 35-plus total yards from scrimmage in each of his past three games and in 4 of his past 5.
  • CHIEFS: Are pretty average versus running backs, giving up 4.2 yards per rush and 6.9 yards per catch to the position over their past nine games.

Gainwell's props are getting a lot of attention because of how much he's contributed to the Eagles offense in their two playoff games (121 total yards against the Giants, 74 total yards against the 49ers). That's created such a high number for Gainwell (his total from the Niners game was 23.5), but it's one he can eclipse on just a handful of touches.

Favorite Chiefs Super Bowl prop

Chiefs team total rush yards under 100.5 (-135) 

I think the Eagles will win, so I like this prop because the Chiefs have averaged 88.0 rush yards in their three losses. Even if the game is real close the odds are in our favor -- in nine games where the Chiefs lost or won by three or fewer points they've averaged 87.6 rush yards per game. The average balloons to over 130.0 when they win by six-plus points. 

If you think the Chiefs will win, the odds on the over here are at +105, so it might be something worth sprinkling or parlaying with the Kansas City moneyline.

Two more Chiefs props

Justin Reid over 5.5 defensive tackles and assists (-109) Reid tends to play closer to the line of scrimmage more often than Juan Thornhill. That should lead to a few more opportunities to pick up some action, particularly against the Eagles' run-first offense. Reid has collected at least six total tackles in five of his past six games. 

Travis Kelce anytime TD (-114) Philadelphia's been one of the best defenses at limiting yardage to tight ends all season long, so if there's a pro-Kelce prop worth taking, this one's it. Mahomes' ability to make improvisational plays in the red zone have helped Kelce remain a huge figure in their end-zone profile, and his opportunities to make plays after the catch keeps the door open on his red-zone scoring prowess. I wouldn't play odds much higher than this, but this is the Kelce prop to try.

If you like a lot of these props ...

Same Game Parlay: Jalen Hurts over 10.5 rush attempts, Travis Kelce anytime TD, and Justin Reid over 5.5 tackles + assists (+650)

If you like the Eagles to win ...

Eagles to win by 7-12 points (+500)
Eagles to win by 13-18 points (+750) You cast a wide net for a sizable Eagles victory if you take both bets. You'll lose one, but if you win the other one then you'll clear at least +300. Eleven of the Eagles' 16 regular and postseason wins have been by seven or more points, and the Chiefs have lost two games by 19-plus points since installing Patrick Mahomes at quarterback (one was Super Bowl LV against the Bucs).