Prop Betting 101: What are Prop Bets?

Team proposition bets are one of the prop options, and they come in different forms. There are no rules with regard to the nature of the prop betting options a given sportsbook may offer, and some of them are quite creative.

One common type of team prop is the season-long win total. The book will post an estimate of how many games each team will win during the season, and you can bet the over or the under.

There are prop bets on the team with the best record in the league, division, and conference, and a proposition on the worst team.

If a team is undefeated or winless for a few games in a row to begin the season, there will be prop questions on whether they will end the season without any wins or losses.

These are a few examples, but this should give you a general idea of the types of team betting props that are offered.

Player props are based on a player's performance, such as the number of touchdowns a quarterback will score or the total points an individual player will score in a basketball game. There are also comparison player props that would look something like this:

How Many Touchdowns Green Bay vs. Buffalo

• Jordan Love -108
• Josh Allen -128

This is an individual game prop, and there are also season-long player props. For instance, odds will be posted on the quarterback who will lead the league in passing yards. 

There are also individual award proposals, such as league MVP, Rookie of the Year, Super Bowl MVP, Comeback Player of the Year, and others.

There can be exotic props that are not tied to the players' performance, and special Super Bowl props are highly anticipated each year. Since many people who aren't big football fans still watch the big game, these props are designed to make it more interesting for them.

You will see the over/under prop on the length of the performance of the National Anthem, and there are coin toss exotic props. The sportsbooks even create exotic prop bets for the halftime performances, like proposition odds for each possible first song.

Commercials that debut during the big game are a cultural phenomenon, creating an opportunity for intrepid oddsmakers. There will be a prop on the company that runs the first commercial, along with head-to-head sponsor matchups.

There are some very good reasons why prop betting markets should be on your radar.

Value

value is at the top of the list. In stock options trading, there is a concept called“extrinsic value” that is instructive in helping you understand the value in the prop markets.

A call option is a bet that a stock will rise above a specified level; this target price is called the "strike price." Even if the option is worth less than the strike price, there is extrinsic value if there is still a considerable period of time left before the option expires.

You can apply this to the season-long proposition bets. If you make a bet before the season starts, you have a chance to win your bet until your team or player is eliminated, and you will probably be alive for months. There is tangible value there.

Multilayered Investment

Another benefit is the multilayered gameplay, which can keep the game interesting regardless of the score. Let’s say that you are looking forward to watching a certain game, and you made a bet on the team you like on the moneyline or the point spread.

Unfortunately, sometimes you are very wrong about the game lines, and you have little to no chance of winning long before the game is over. If you also have a prop side bet on the final outcome, or a wager on the team that will score last, or a player that will score the last touchdown, you will still have action.

There are game and team props for all major sports in the United States.

Where do you find prop bets on online sports betting sites? Each operator has a somewhat different design, but they are similar overall. FanDuel has links to all the different types of prop bets near the top of the ”more bets” page for each respective sport.

You will see each proposition under the corresponding heading, and the odds are clearly displayed on betting buttons. If you click on one, it will appear on the bet slip that sits on the right of the page, and you can fill in the amount that you want to bet.

NFL Prop Bets

NFL football is the most popular spectator sport in the United States by far. Some examples of NFL prop bets could include:

• Patrick Mahomes over 289.5 passing yards -110
• Derrick Henry over 74.5 rushing yards -115
• Tyreek Hill anytime TD scorer +140
• Micah Parsons over 1.5 sacks +160
• Total touchdowns in a game over 5.5 -120
• Travis Kelce first TD scorer +600

NCAAF Prop Bets

You will see prop odds for every college football game, though you'll notice they're more limited than in the NFL. Here are some examples:

• Travis Hunter anytime TD scorer +180
• Ashton Jeanty over 149.5 rushing yards -112
• Total TDs in game over 6.5 -110
• Dillon Gabriel over 259.5 passing yards -108

Several states restrict or ban college player props entirely. College player props are banned in New Jersey, Vermont, Maryland, and Ohio; and restricted in Louisiana, Colorado, and Illinois. Always check current state rules, as regulations evolve frequently.

NBA Prop Bets

You will find plenty of NBA props. These are some of the props that may be offered on a particular game:

There are also season props, including player propositions on the leaders of each respective statistical category and individual award NBA props. You can make NBA futures bets on which team will win the NBA Championship and the division and conference titles.

NCAAB Prop Bets

If you love college basketball, you can make it all the more interesting if you bet props on NCAA hoops. As with the rest of sports, there are season-long college basketball proposition odds. Here are some examples:

• Cooper Flagg over 18.5 points -115
• Total points in game over 148.5 -110
• Player over 9.5 points in first half -112

The same state-level restrictions that apply to college football apply. New Jersey, Vermont, Maryland, and Ohio have banned college player props. Some states restrict props to Tier 1 or D1 programs only. Individual sportsbook policies also vary.

NHL Prop Bets

Sportsbooks offer a wide array of prop markets for NHL games. Here are some of the single-game prop options you might see on the board:

MLB Prop Bets

Anyone who bets props will tell you that it is a lot of fun to root for a certain player to hit a home run or record an RBI. 

There are season-long proposition betting options as well, and World Series betting opportunities are expanded.

Soccer Prop Bets

These are some of the single-game props that are offered on a typical matchup:

• Lionel Messi anytime goal scorer +160
• Player to receive a yellow card +280
• Player to win over 2.5 corners -120
• Christian Pulisic over 1.5 shots on target -108
• GK over 2.5 saves -115

Season-long soccer bets are largely confined to the futures. Aside from odds to win the championship, there are futures for top 10 finishes, top 6 finishes, finishes outside the top spots, and others, depending on the sportsbook.

Golf Prop Bets

The propositions offered at a given sportsbook vary, but there are tournament props and season-specific props:

• First American to win the Masters +150
• Scottie Scheffler round 1 under 67 +180
• Rory McIlroy top-5 finish +350
• Tiger Woods to make the cut yes/no -140
• Xander Schauffele vs Hideki Matsuyama: lower round 2 score -115
• Any player hole-in-one during tournament +300

Sportsbooks often have a blanket betting interest called the “field.” You would see the field bet for this type of golf proposition, and it is offered for other sports when appropriate. When you wager on the field, you win if a player who is not listed individually achieves the prop goal.

UFC & Boxing Prop Bets

As you would imagine, boxing props are very similar to MMA prop markets. These are some of the MMA bet props for entire fights that may be posted:

• Jon Jones to win by TKO/KO -140
• Fight to go to decision yes/no +110
• Fight ends in round 2 yes/no +400
• Over/under 2.5 rounds -125
• Fighter to win without being knocked down +130
• Islam Makhachev over 49.5 significant strikes landed -115

Entertainment Prop Bets

Entertainment prop betting involves wagering on award shows and reality TV contests. You may also find propositions tied to aspects of the Super Bowl halftime performance and the National Anthem.

• Halftime show over/under 14.5 minutes -115
• Winner thanks their spouse in speech yes/no +110
• Wrong winner announced at Oscars yes/no +1200