Did bettors have Tom Brady inside info?

According to at least one well-respected sportsbook manager in Las Vegas, indications are that some knowledgeable bettors apparently knew that quarterback Tom Brady would not retire as previously stated, but instead return to play in Tampa, before it was publicly announced.

The Buccaneers were 60-1 long shots at the Westgate SuperBook to win the 2023 Super Bowl and 30-1 to win the NFC when a respected high-level bettor bet on Tampa Bay to win both the conference and NFL titles. Even after the book lowered the odds on the Bucs to 25-1 to win the Super Bowl, the bettor placed another bet.

The odds at online books also changed dramatically in the wake of the “unretirement” news.

“There’s not a doubt in my mind that they knew he was coming back when they placed those wagers on Thursday,” Westgate SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay said. “And these were not casual bettors. They would be categorized as educated bettors. It wasn’t a guy with a Tom Brady jersey at the counter. It was a player that we would describe as sharp. With that type of play and the announcement we heard that (Brady) was unretiring, there was information that was shared prior to his official announcement.

“There is no doubt in my mind that information leaked… This is concerning. I don’t think I’ve ever said the NFL really needs to investigate something. But this is something they need to look into and how it got out, because there are many books that took some sizable wagers in the middle of last week.”

Brian McCarthy, NFL vice president of communications, would not comment about Kornegay’s uneasiness over the situation.

When Brady announced he was returning, the SuperBook lowered Tampa Bay from 14-1 to 10-1 to win the Super Bowl and from 7-1 to 5-1 to win the NFC.

At the South Point, another highly-regarded sportsbook manager, Chris Andrews, said the book took significant bets on Tampa Bay to win the Super Bowl at 50-1. When the South Point lowered the odds to 25-1, the bettor placed another bet. After the Brady news broke, South Point moved the Bucs from 14-1 to 4-1 favorites to win the Super Bowl.

Kornegay said the SuperBook will owe bettors six figures in each of several states if Tampa Bay wins the Super Bowl.

“If it was Jameis Winston at quarterback, we wouldn’t have a problem with it,” Kornegay said. “But when it’s Tom Brady you have a six-figure liability with, we’re certainly not comfortable with it. That’s a biggie. It’s not about a player being in or out of a game tonight. You’re talking about the best quarterback of all time playing or not playing.”

The SuperBook changed Super Bowl odds on some other teams, moving the Green Bay Packers from 7-1 to 8-1, the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers from 8-1 to 10-1, and the Dallas Cowboys from 12-1 to 14-1. The Buffalo Bills are the 7-1 favorites at the SuperBook to win the Super Bowl, and the Kansas City Chiefs are the 9-1 third choice.

“(Tampa Bay) still have to get a lot of pieces together, and they’re probably not going to be as good as last year,” Kornegay opined. “They have so many free agents, and they have a much tougher schedule this time around.”

Tampa Bay is tied with the Rams and 49ers as the 5-1 second choice to win the NFC behind the Packers, the 4-1 favorites.

Source:

“SuperBook VP wonders if bettors had inside information on Tom Brady” , Todd Dewey, lvrj.com, March 14, 2021.