Among the many things on which you can now wager (in the places where you can legally wager) is the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award.
DraftKings has one player as the clear favorite for 2021: Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
Prescott, who suffered a season-ending ankle fracture in Week Five of the 2020 season, has +175 odds to win the award.
The next three candidates all have +600 odds: Giants running back Saquon Barkley, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey. Each missed significant time last year due to injury.
Ditto for 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa. He’s at +700 after suffering a torn ACL in Week Two of the 2020 season.
Others on the list due to injury include Chargers safety Derwin James (+1600), Broncos linebacker Von Miller (+1600), Bengals running back Joe Mixon (+2000), Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (+2500), Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter (+3300), Falcons receiver Julio Jones (+3300), and 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (+5000).
Saints receiver Michael Thomas isn’t listed, but should be.
On the list for what Charean Williams would call “coming back from sucking” are Colts quarterback Carson Wentz (+900), Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold (+1600), and Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (+3300).
The odds include players who are coming back from opting out: Bears running back Damien Williams (+8000), Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower (+10000), and Jets linebacker CJ Mosley (+10000).
Also on the list are two players coming back from retirement and/or exile: Potential Jaguars tight end Tim Tebow (+3300) and Chiefs tackle Kyle Long (+15000).
The fact that Tebow has the same odds as Hunter, Jones, and Winston is amazing; Tebow isn’t even on a team. And even if the Jaguars sign him (the silence is becoming deafening), he has to make the game-day roster before having a chance to do anything that would justify voting for him.
Personally, I like Wentz at +900. I’d also like another guy who, like Thomas, didn’t make the list. New Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, despite starting 16 games and throwing for more than 4,000 yards last year, will get votes if he has a huge first year in L.A.