All bets are on ... at least for the Packers this season

4-0 start fuels betting for one-time underdog    

By Tony Walter   greenbaypressgazette.com    

  A lot of people are betting on the Packers to keep winning.    

Legal gambling businesses are fielding more and more bets on the Green Bay Packers because of the team's 4-0 start, with more than 90 percent of the bettors on Sunday's Packers-Bears game putting their money on Green Bay winning by at least 3.5 points, according to one gambling outlet.

"I can tell you that last week's most bets on a team in the NFL was none other than the Green Bay Packers at Sportsbook.com," said Christopher Costigan, whose company owns the largest online gambling Web site.

"Green Bay betting has been gaining lots of steam," said David Harmon of Sportsbook.com. "The Packers are an extremely hot team for the public to side with."

The Packers were underdogs in their first four games, so they became an increasingly popular wager for regular gamblers. But the odds are changing.

A 6-to-1 favorite to win the NFC North division when the season began, the Packers are now a 1-2 favorite. A 45-to-1 bet to win the Super Bowl before the season began, they are now listed at 15-1 by Sportsbook.com. Brett Favre's chances of being named the NFL's most valuable player this season are at 15-1.

  Winning breeds betting.    

"The Packers are one of those public teams that everyone seems to back when they're winning," said Chuck Esposito of Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.

Betting on the Packers is a natural reaction, said Dennis Lorenz, associate professor of human development at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

"Human beings are gamblers," Lorenz said. "We do it every day. Should I buckle my seat belt? Should I cross the street on a red light? What are my odds? It's natural that it would spill over into sports."

  Lorenz said betting on the Packers also gives fans a sense of camaraderie and solidarity.    

  Despite the Packers' success, the director of the Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling warned against too much betting.    

"There's a lot more attention being given to gambling now with the team winning," Executive Director Rose Gruber said. "We do seem to get more calls to our helpline in the fall, but a problem gambler is a problem gambler and anything can trigger them to gamble."