- Kentucky QB Will Levis continues to move up the 2023 NFL Draft odds boards.
- Levis is now listed at +500 to be the no. 1 pick of the 2023 NFL Draft at BetOnline after opening at +3000 odds.
- The Chicago Bears are picking first overall in the draft but are rumored to be willing to trade down to quarterback-needy teams.
Will Levis continues to move up in the 2023 NFL Draft odds boards due to persistent rumors that the Chicago Bears will trade the top overall pick in the upcoming Draft.
Levis opened at +3000 odds to be the top pick of this year’s draft. One month ago, he was at +2000. Those odds shortened further to +750 in late January. Now, Levis is listed at +500 odds via online sportsbook BetOnline with only Bryce Young at -120 and CJ Stroud at +275 ahead of him in the latest 2023 NFL Draft Odds boards.
Should the Chicago Bears stick or trade with the Number 1 pick in the #NFLDraft? ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/6SCw2tQ9nt
— Gridiron (@Gridiron) February 14, 2023
Bears to Trade No. 1 Pick?
The Houston Texans spent nearly the entire season holding the pole position to have the no. 1 pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. But the Texans defeated the Tennessee Titans 19-14 in Week 16 and rallied to beat the Indianapolis Colts 32-31 in their final game of the regular season.
Meanwhile, the Bears finished their 2022 campaign with 10 straight losses and locked up the top pick of this year’s draft with a loss at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings in Week 18.
Despite the disappointing year, Chicago saw QB Justin Fields take a step forward in his second year. They opened the season with a 2-1 SU record and were 3-4 SU after seven games.
They suffered key injuries down the stretch and the team showed that they have plenty of holes in their roster. However, quarterback is not one of the holes.
With Fields seemingly entrenched as the long-term option behind center for the Bears, there are rumors that they could trade the no. 1 pick, considering that the consensus Top 2 picks are quarterbacks.
Currently, the NFL has several quarterback-needy teams including the Texans, Colts, Carolina Panthers, and Las Vegas Raiders who many feel are desperate enough to be willing to trade up in the draft.
Since 1997, the top pick of the NFL Draft has been traded only four times, including in 2005 when Eli Manning was technically drafted by the Chargers and traded to the Giants.
According to BetOnline, the Bears are a -200 favorite to trade the first overall pick and a +150 to hold on to it. With the rumors persisting, that betting market has opened up the possibility of Levis ending up as the top pick, thus boosting his odds.
That's our quarterback! pic.twitter.com/VKJdCUNP7r
— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) October 16, 2022
Will Levis is an Intriguing Option as Top Pick
The 23-year-old from Newton Massachusetts is an intriguing option as the Top pick of the upcoming NFL Draft. The 6’3” quarterback attended Penn State from 2018-2020. After redshirting his first year, Levis spent the next two years as the backup to Sean Clifford.
He played sparingly with the Nittany Lions, completing 61 of 102 passes for 644 passing yards with 3 touchdowns and two interceptions. Then he made the move to Kentucky, where he established himself as a top NFL Draft prospect.
In two seasons with the Wildcats, Levis diced up SEC opposition with his arms and legs, throwing for 2,827 yards with 24 passing touchdowns and 9 rushing scores. In 2022 however, he threw just 19 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. Kentucky finished at 7-6 SU, 4th in the SEC.
While Kentucky did not find success this past season, it was mainly because the team had suffered several key injuries, had a porous offensive line, and lacked offensive weapons. Still, Levis is touted to have the physical gifts and skillset that would prime him for success in the professional ranks.
Levis has size, strength, vision, and cannon arm. With the right coaching, Draft analysts believe that he has the same traits as Josh Allen and Carson Wentz. Allen is a perennial NFL MVP betting favorite while Wentz was one of the NFL’s top QB prospects before sustaining numerous injuries.
Bears are in the Bottom 5
The Bears are currently in the Bottom 5 in the way too-early Super Bowl 58 betting boards. At +7500 odds via BetOnline, they are tied with the Washington Commanders for the third-worst odds to win it all next season. Only the Arizona Cardinals and Indianapolis Colts at +10000 and the Houston Texans at +15000 have worse title odds than them.
At Bet365, Chicago has the second-worst odds to win the NFC Conference at +3500 with the Cardinals the only team having longer odds than them at +6000. The San Francisco 49ers are the NFC favorites at +320 odds while the reigning conference champions Eagles are next at +350.
Chicago has made the playoffs just three times in the last 16 seasons. Two of those postseason appearances have ended in the wild card round, including their most recent in 2020. In 2010, the Bears reached the NFC Conference championship game where they lost to the Packers.
The Bears had a 12-4 season in 2018 when they last won the NFC North Division. However, they lost in the wild-card round to the eventual champions Philadelphia Eagles in the infamous “Double Doink” game where Cody Parker missed the game-winning field goal from 43 yards out.
Two seasons after that, the Bears moved on from QB Mitch Trubisky whom the team picked 2nd overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. Chicago drafted Fields 11th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft to replace Trubisky.
