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NFL Draft odds: Massive fluctuations surrounding Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye
Jayden Daniels (left) and Drake Maye (right). USA TODAY Sports photos.

NFL Draft odds: Massive fluctuations surrounding Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye

As is tradition a few days before the NFL draft, the rumor mill is abuzz with reports that are powerful enough to shift the betting markets.

Such is the case this Friday, six days out from the first round. The subject of the rumors is namely Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders, and the rumors have done enough to drasticaly alter the odds on who goes No. 2 between Daniels and Drake Maye.

Let's try to make sense of it all.

Washington reportedly brought in all four top QB prospects at once

The Commanders own the second pick, and the right to select any of Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye or J.J. McCarthy, with Caleb Williams locked in to Chicago at No. 1.

Reportedly, Washington brought in all four QBs at once rather than individually, which led to some cryptic tweets from Daniels's agent.

Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk, a man who lives off trading rumors, went on the air to bash Washington and suggest Daniels won't want to play for them.

Obviously, this is just one man's opinion, but it's seemingly done enough to alter the market on who is the second QB taken in next week's draft.

Odds shifting for No. 2 selection

Yesterday, Daniels was -350 to go second to Washington and Maye was +240, the most pronounced split we've seen yet from them as the two have flip-flopped in this draft slot for a few months.

Suddenly, after these reports, the new odds, courtesy of ESPN BET, are as follows:

  • Daniels (-130)
  • Maye (-105)

That's a massive shift so soon before the draft, which again hammers home how volatile, and honestly, how silly this market can be. To shift so much off an analyst's comments is something worth proceeding with caution.

Apparently, Daniels's camp was not happy with how this visit went to Washington, and perhaps that will push the Commanders to look elsewhere if Daniels says he does not want to be a Commander.

The Minnesota Vikings enter the conversation 

Reportedly, Daniels's camp was not too keen on booking a meeting with a team like Minnesota, because they have not been convinced Minnesota has the ammunition to trade up into the second or third slot that Daniels is expected to go.

Earlier this offseason, the Vikings acquired an extra first-round pick, in what has widely been accepted as a move to put them in position to move up to nab a QB.

Now, however, Daniels and his agent have finally met with Minnesota, suggesting perhaps, all may not go according to plan with Washington at No. 2.

New England may be a more amenable partner to trade down from No. 3, as they are a few years away from competing, while the Vikings with Justin Jefferson may feel like they're just a QB away and willing to sell the farm to get their guy.

Daniels is currently +1100 to be drafted by Minnesota, which to us seems like the best use of a bet following all of this noise.

What to make of this all?

Consider last year. A day before the draft, rumors picked up like crazy that Will Levis would go second, so much so that he was -145 to go the Texans at No. 2. As you may recall, Levis fell all the way out of the first round.

Take all of this with a grain of salt.

This could simply be a gift to grab Daniels at a much better price to still go to Washington. Otherwise, we like sprinkling on Minnesota finding the resources to move up and get the quarterback they so desperately need.

Please, bet lightly on markets like the NFL Draft, because these things change on a whim. This surely is just the beginning of this Daniels-Washington saga, and we'll know for sure next Thursday evening.

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