NFL Draft 2020 Prediction and Odds: Betting on the NFL Draft in New Jersey

The 2020 NFL Draft is almost upon us – it runs from Thursday, April 23 through Saturday, April 25 – but now, as a result of the current pandemic, it is no longer going to be held in front of a live audience in Las Vegas, though it is still unclear how the event will be broadcasted on television.

Regardless of how the draft unfolds (keep checking back here for updates!), if you’re a football gambler who lives in New Jersey, it is time to make some serious NFL Draft prop bets, and thanks to online betting and looser gambling laws in the United States, betting on professional football games is at an all-time high these days.

If you live in New Jersey, you have plenty of legal choices depending on your personal preferences, and betting on the upcoming draft can be as easy or as complicated as you like depending on the type of bets you prefer to make.

Here we present the hottest 2020 NFL Draft betting lines, odds and predictions with links to several places you can place bets in New Jersey – you will definitely want to take advantage of some of these fun wagers.

Always check back for the most current odds.

First Overall Pick – Odds and Predictions

Joe Burrow

The most popular NFL Draft prediction is who will be selected first overall, and this year there is an overwhelming favorite, LSU star quarterback Joe Burrow, who led his team to a college national championship after throwing for 60 touchdowns during the regular season.

To win $100 betting on being the first overall bet would cost you $10,000 – probably not a good use of your gambling kitty.

The Cincinnati Bengals have the first overall pick and are in desperate need of a quarterback, and unless they shock the world and trade back with another team, they are predicted to select Burrow and make him their franchise man under center for the foreseeable future.

Tua Tagovailoa

Second in line is Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the Hawaiian born left-handed thrower who led his Crimson Tide to back to back college football championships, winning the one in 2018 and becoming the game’s MVP.

Tagovailoa’s 2019 season ended prematurely after he suffered a dislocated hip, and though he was not medically cleared in time to participate in the 2020 NFL combine, he had planned on taking part in Alabama’s pro day until it was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Here are the predictions and odds of the top players who could be selected first overall:
The odds for the first overall pick at the 2020 NFL Draft are provided by DraftKings Sportsbook.

This wager might have been different had Tagovailoa been able to stay healthy during the 2019 season, but with his year shortened due to injury, Burrow easily stepped into the first slot after one of the most impressive seasons in college history.

Justin Herbert, the talented Oregon Duck, is a distant third, though in many mock drafts he is predicted to be taken in the first round by the Los Angeles Chargers, who have a huge quarterback need now without Philip Rivers and who have the 6^th pick overall.

There is a good chance that the top half dozen players on this list will be selected by the end of the first round given how valuable a talented young quarterback is in the NFL coupled with how dire certain teams have found themselves under center (Bengals, Miami Dolphins, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Chargers in particular).

First Running Back Drafted – Odds and Predictions

The overwhelming favorite here is Georgia’s D’Andre Swift, the Georgia back who carried the ball 196 times during the 2019 season for 1,218 yards and 7 touchdowns, plus he had 24 catches for 216 yards and another touchdown.

Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor is next in line after having an incredible 2019 carrying the ball a whopping 320 times for 2,003 yards and 21 touchdowns, plus he had 26 catches for 252 yards and 5 more touchdowns.

Dobbins of THE Ohio State University is also a tremendous powerhouse, with 301 carries in 2019 for 2,003 yards and 21 touchdowns in addition to 23 receptions for 247 yards and 2 more touchdowns.

Alabama’s star wide receiver, Jerry Jeudy, had two incredible seasons in a row where he caught 68 balls for 1,315 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2018 and had 77 receptions in 2019 for 1,163 yards and 10 touchdowns.

His Alabama cohort, Henry Ruggs, has the third-best chance to be the first receiver picked overall.

CeeDee Lamb put on an incredible show in Oklahoma, with 62 catches in 2019 for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns, a Consensus All-American and First-team All-Big 12 that season.

First Offensive Lineman Selected – Odds and Predictions

There is a tremendous need for talented offensive linemen in the NFL right now (and forever) since they are the anchor of an effective offense, creating blocks and opening holes for the run game and protecting the quarterback and giving him time to throw in the passing game.

Mekhi Becton of Louisville and Tristan Wirfs of Iowa are the two top athletes at this position, both with equal chances to be the first offensive lineman selected in this draft, and both with excellent showings at the NFL Combine.

Right now, the teams with the biggest offensive line needs and the highest draft selections are the New York Giants with the 4^th pick, the Arizona Cardinals with the 8^th pick and the Cleveland Browns with the 10^th pick.

First Cornerback – Odds and Predictions

To be an effective cornerback, you have to have speed, agility, and a high football IQ, and Ohio State’s Jeffrey Okudah has all of those and more, easily predicted to be the first overall cornerback selected after a 2019 season that included 3 interceptions, 9 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles and 35 total tackles.

Next in line is longshot C.J. Henderson, who had himself a dandy three-year career with the Florida Gators, posting 6 total interceptions, 20 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles and 93 total tackles.

Kristian Fulton automatically gets a nod here after helping his LSU Tigers win a national championship last season with an interception, 14 passes defended and 38 total tackles.

Position of Mr. Irrelevant – Odds and Predictions

The title of ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ is given to whichever player is selected last in the NFL Draft.

The first person to have ever received that title was wide receiver Kelvin Kirk, who in 1976 was pick number 487.

Kirk never made it in the NFL, but he went on to have a career in the Canadian Football League from 1977-83.

Position of Mr. Irrelevant

First Tight End – Odds and Predictions

Ever since Gronk (retired New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski) re-invented the way the tight end position was played by getting involved in the passing game as a hard-to-tackle receiver as well as serving as an additional blocker on the offensive line.

Notre Dame’s Cole Kmet is the perfect example of that, with a 2019 season that included 43 receptions for 515 yards and 6 touchdowns, averaging 12 yards per catch in the ten games he played.

Adam Trautman played tight end for the University of Dayton Flyers and caught the attention of NFL scouts by catching 70 balls last year for 916 yards and 14 touchdowns after 2018 season that included 40 receptions for 596 yards and 9 touchdowns.

First Linebacker Drafted – Odds and Predictions

Isaiah Simmons had himself an attention-grabbing 2019 season for Clemson and positioned himself as the easy favorite for the first linebacker drafted after posting 3 interceptions, 8 passes defended, 7 sacks, 104 total tackles and a forced fumble last year.

K’Lavon Chaisson of LSU also has a decent chance to be selected in the first round, having a 2019 season that included a National College Championship also had him with 60 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

The rest of the listed players are all longshots, though chances are they are talented enough to find themselves on an NFL roster in 2020.

First Defensive Player Drafted – Odds and Predictions

Many draft experts are saying that Chase Young, the defensive end from Ohio State, is the best overall athlete in the draft and would be selected first overall if the Cincinnati Bengals didn’t so desperately need a quarterback.

Young “The Disruptor” is predicted to be the first defensive player selected and the second pick overall, the Buckeye with 16.5 sacks last season (many of them strip-sacks), along with 6 forced fumbles, 3 passes defended and 32 total tackles.

Young’s teammate, cornerback Jeffrey Okuday, is on the shortlist of first-round worthy defensive players, but even his 3 interceptions, 9 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles and 35 total tackles won’t be enough to edge out Young in this category.

Here are three sportsbooks that are highly respected in the business, easy to use and offer a large variety of NFL Draft Prop Bets.

We have also included links to the sites and a brief description of some of the promotions currently available.

Click on the links for further information and the most current NFL Draft betting lines and NFL Draft betting odds.

888Sport NJ

888Sport is fully licensed and regulated by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) to offer real-money online sports betting to legal age players.

They are a responsible player in online sports betting, but unfortunately, their services are only available to bettors in the state.

They currently offer two signup promotions:

GET $10 FREE WHEN YOU CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT

This unbeatable sign-up offer is exclusively available to newly registered players at 888Sport NJ.

GET UP TO $500 WELCOME BONUS*

Make a minimum deposit of $10 or more, place your bets at the amount of your first deposit (choose bets that have odds of -200 or higher) and once the bets are settled, 888Sport will double your deposit up to $500.

*Some restrictions apply

DraftKings Sportsbook

Draftkings Sportsbook is an established, American-born company with over 9 million players worldwide.

Their advanced security makes it a safe, online sports betting platform, a proven, industry-leading technology you can count on.

DraftKings will advertise promotions or offers where Free Bets will be rewarded based on a specific activity or behavior that is undertaken. You can find these promotions by visiting the DraftKings Sportsbook promotions page.

bet365 NJ

If you’re from New Jersey and you like betting on football, bet365 has got you covered.

You can place wagers with their easy-to-use sports betting service.

Head to our bet365 NJ sportsbook guide to find out more about getting started.