With the 2022 NFL Draft being taken place in Las Vegas, fans across the country made their way to Sin City for the three-day event. Plenty of people arrived in town leading up to the first round on Thursday, as they were ready to make wagers on the same day as the event. Well, things changed in a big way, as NFL Draft betting in Vegas had a last-hour change that people were not a fan of.
Per a report, the sportsbooks in Las Vegas had to pull any kind of a prop bet for the 2022 NFL Draft 24 hours before the first round arrived. With this, meant that all the prop bets had to be taken off the board on Wednesday night. What in the world? Countless people were furious with this decision, as they had planned to make their bets the day of the draft.
With this, though, it makes sense for multiple reasons. No. 1, leaks and reports of who is going to get drafted usually drop the night before the draft. Because of this, people were no question going to be putting a ton of money on the picks that were being reported ahead of time. We all saw this with George pass-rusher Travon Walker. It was basically a foregone conclusion he’d go No. 1 on Thursday night.
The big reports stated the Jaguars were locked in on him going No. 1 overall to Jacksonville. With this, millions of dollars started pouring in for Walker to be taken at the top spot. Then, that meant Aidan Hutchinson would of course go No. 2 to the Detroit Lions. Vegas understood this, which is why they decided to pull the plug on the prop bets a day early. That doesn’t mean people liked it, however.
Having said that, fans are calling for NFL Draft changes in the future, as they’re not happy about how things played out in Las Vegas. You have to remember that a lot of people plan their trips and vacations to Las Vegas around different sporting events and betting. This was 100 percent going to be the case for the NFL Draft, which brought in loads of people.
Because of this, people were fired up to get to town and make their bets. They checked out the best rated sportsbooks ahead of time and were dialed in for the NFL odds for the draft. Then, imagine getting to Sin City and having the people at the sportsbooks say that it was too late to make any prop bets for the draft? This understandably had people upset.
What made things worse is that this wasn’t known publicly. People would have changed their plans to accommodate the betting rules. Moving forward, NFL fans want there to be set rules put in place and not have things changed on the fly. There are always going to be different kinds of leaks when it comes to the draft. That’s going to go down every single year.
With this, the sportsbooks simply just can’t cut things off at the last second like this. Procedures need to be in place, otherwise there’s only going to be more confusion down the road. If anything, that would prevent people from wanting to travel to big events in Vegas. That’s not what anyone wants to see, especially the local businesses out there.
Even more interesting here is that NFL Draft odds are already out for 2023. Per multiple reports, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud is the favorite to be taken No. 1 overall, while signal-callers Bryce Young and Will Levis are also in the mix. This next draft class is loaded at the quarterback position and there’s going to be plenty of intrigue leading up to things.
If anything, this adds to the importance of making sure things are squared away when it comes to the prop bets for people. Imagine next year if prop bets are shut down 24 hours leading up to the first round too? This will infuriate fans, as they’ll be ready to try and bet on that No. 1 pick. Will it be Stroud, Levis or Young? No one knows, as their 2022 seasons will play a big role in things. It could make or break who hears their name called first.
After that season does wrap up, then we’ll have a much better idea of who will be taken at the top. Then, everyone will be waiting for the NFL Combine to get here too. That will really have a monster impact on who goes at the top. Young is coming off a Heisman season too. If he goes back-to-back, it could be tough for a team to pass up on him if he’s available. This will all be something to monitor closely. The 2023 NFL Draft can’t get here soon enough.
