After missing the Kansas City Chiefs’ first three Super Bowl titles of their dynastic run while with the Cleveland Browns, Kareem Hunt is hungry for a shot at redemption. The 29-year-old became a star early in his career with Kansas City, when he won the rushing title in his rookie season in 2017. His career was derailed a year later after a damning video emerged of him assaulting a woman in a Cleveland hotel.
But now, six years later, a supposedly more mature Hunt has returned and has enjoyed somewhat of a bounce-back season, taking 200 carries for 728 yards and seven touchdowns. He’ll have a chance to lift his first Lombardi Trophy when the Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles tonight in New Orleans.
At DraftKings Sportsbook, Kansas City is a 1.5-point favorite, and the point total is set at 48.5. Below, I’ve identified my favorite prop bets centered around Hunt.
Best Kareem Hunt Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Kareem Hunt U11.5 Rushing Attempts (-126)
If the Chiefs want to win their third consecutive Super Bowl title, they’ll need to beat the Eagles through the air. Both teams’ rushing defenses are elite — during the regular season, Kansas City ranked sixth and Philadelphia ninth in yards per attempt — and, as such, they were infrequently challenged. The Eagles might be able to get away with running it tonight, because Saquon Barkley is Saquon Barkley, but the Chiefs will have a much tougher task handing it off to Hunt.
Although Hunt was a true workhorse in his first nine weeks with the team, averaging 19.4 rushing attempts per game, it was because Isiah Pacheco was injured. Since Pacheco returned prior to Kansas City’s Week 13 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, he has taken 8.4 carries per game and Hunt has garnered 10. It’s clear that Andy Reid trusts Hunt more than Pacheco, even though both running backs are fairly inefficient, and during the AFC Championship Game, Hunt did record a team-high 17 carries, his most in a game that Pacheco also played. But Buffalo’s front seven is significantly worse than Philadelphia’s, so I don’t think Hunt will be effective enough to justify high volume tonight.
Kareem Hunt 1st First Down (+900)
This is a fun long shot with friendly odds, although if the Eagles receive the ball first, it’s unlikely to hit, given that Philadelphia picked up 21.0 first downs per game in the regular season, the eighth-most in football.
While Hunt has done most of his damage in the second half, he has seen the second-most volume in the first quarter, earning 165 yards on his 49 first-quarter attempts (3.7 per game) while picking up eight first downs during the regular season. He’s been trusted in the opening 15 minutes slightly more frequently than Pacheco, who only had 25 first-quarter carries (3.6 per game) and gained six first downs. Plus, Reid trusts Hunt more than Pacheco in short-yardage situations, having garnered 39 touches within three yards of the line to gain, as compared to Pacheco’s 20. In those situations, Hunt has picked up 30 first downs to Pacheco’s 10.
