So much for home-field advantage. The New England Patriots immediately opened as 2.5-point road favorites against the Denver Broncos, then shot up to 3.5-point faves minutes later suggesting the money is pouring in on Tom Brady and company (as expected).

Meanwhile, home-field holds true in the NFC championship, with the Carolina Panthers laying three against the Arizona Cardinals. Though that line, if you go by the “home team gets three points” rule, suggests the two would be at a pick’em were they playing on a neutral field.

The Super Bowl odds are a bit more surprising (via Betfair):

New England Patriots: 15/8 (1.88/1)

Carolina Panthers: 2/1

Denver Broncos: 7/2 (3.5/1)

Arizona Cardinals: 4/1

Weird, no? Not the favorite — New England, even though Vegas might consider them worse than the Panthers, are favored because they’re more likely to make the Super Bowl. But the Cards/Panthers spread is basically a toss-up, with Carolina getting a little more love because they’re at home.

Yet Arizona is almost certainly a better bet to make the Super Bowl than Denver and, even if both teams make it, wouldn’t the Cardinals be favored? I’d think so, but there you have it — Denver has better odds to win it all than Arizona. (After Saturday, is the thinking that Carson Palmer will choke worse than Peyton?) I guess when we’re talking about decimal points, it’s all negligible, but still: The Cardinals at 4/1 are easily the best bet on the board, with the Broncos at 7/2 an inexplicable play.