Did bettors know Tom Brady was returning to Bucs before Sunday?

It turns out Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo may not have been the first supposed outsider to know that seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Tom Brady would be ending his brief retirement to return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for at least one last season. 

ESPN’s David Purdum reported Monday afternoon that multiple Las Vegas sportsbooks received big-money bets this past Thursday on the Buccaneers to win Super Bowl LVII when the Bucs were listed as massive underdogs. 

One individual in New Jersey “who had never made a bet” with the SuperBook asked to make a pair of $10,000 wagers on the Buccaneers to win the NFC at 30-1 and the Super Bowl at 60-1. That company allowed the person to bet $1,000 and then shifted Tampa Bay’s odds to win the NFC to 12-1 and the club’s Super Bowl odds to 25-1. 

South Point sportsbook director Chris Andrews told ESPN he took three bets on the Buccaneers to win the Super Bowl from the same person just before 3 p.m. this past Thursday at odds of 50-1, 30-1 and 25-1.

“I have a feeling that he had good information,” Andrews said of that individual. 

Circa Sports sportsbook manager Chris Bennett added he believes somebody who made a “significant” bet on the Buccaneers to win the Super Bowl at 30-1 that same day “knew” of Brady’s intentions. 

“Vegas always knows,” teaches a reliable sports adage.