The NFL regular season kicks off three weeks from tonight â yes, an unusual Wednesday Kickoff Game â and we are getting more and more information on futures odds at the best betting apps now that there has been good action. So today, thanks to DraftKings Sportsbook, let's look at the odds on which quarterback leads the league in interceptions thrown. Really, it's the only individual prop annually that you don't want your favorite QB to win.
So, yeah, I'll be pretty peeved if Chicago's Caleb Williams does, because that means the former No. 1 overall pick and Heisman winner took a step back in Year 2 under Coach Ben Johnson. Priced at +1600, DK is fairly exposed on him with third-most handle and third-most tickets sold on this prop â that book doesn't give percentages. Fans can stay up to date on our NFL news page, and bettors can also find picks from the SportsLine Projection Model and our experts during the 2026 NFL season.
I'm pretty confident Williams will not lead in that category after throwing only seven picks last year and six as a rookie. His 1.2% career interception rate is the lowest in NFL history for a quarterback with at least 1,000 pass attempts. I'd still prefer him to Drake Maye, so the Patriots can pound sand.
If recent history is any indication, the 2026 INT leader will likely throw between 15 and 17 picks. That has been the case every season this decade, other than in 2023 when Sam Howell threw 21 for Washington. That was an outlier, though, as Howell was thrown into the fire on a bad team after barely playing in 2022 as a fifth-round rookie. He's now third-string in Dallas and probably never starts another NFL game that matters.
While last year the Raiders' Geno Smith led alone with 17 interceptions, there are somewhat frequently ties for the lead â in 2024, Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield topped the NFL with 16 each. There were also ties in 2022 (Davis Mills and Dak Prescott), 2021 (Trevor Lawrence and Matthew Staffford) and in 2020 (Drew Lock and Carson Wentz).
You will want to check with your sportsbook, but it's pretty standard that if there were a tie that Dead Heat Rules apply. That simply means your wager is divided by the number of tied players and that's how it is paid out. I was rather curious when the last three-way tie was, because obviously that drains your bet even more, and it was in 2007.
That Smith is still a starting quarterback in this league, back now with the Jets, at age 35 and after getting benched on an awful Raiders team last season is rather comical to me, but Gang Green doesn't really have any better options. And I think they want to stink in 2026 so they can get Arch Manning or Dante Moore at the top of the 2027 NFL Draft.
Smith is the +950 favorite on this prop, and the book is second-most exposed on him, as he ranks No. 2 in handle and tickets. But I would not play that, because there seems to be little chance Smith starts the entire season short of hugely overachieving. Team brass is quite high on fourth-round rookie Cade Klubnik out of Clemson, so my guess is that he takes over eventually. Maybe following the team's Week 13 bye when New York is sitting 3-9 or something.
It so happens that the Jets open Sept. 13 at the Titans, and it's second-year Tennessee quarterback Cam Ward where DraftKings is most exposed. Last year's No. 1 overall pick not only ranks first in handle and tickets but is priced quite long at +1800.
Ward was up-and-down in 2025, but he only had seven interceptions and it sure seems like Tennessee upgraded its coaching staff around him this offseason by hiring Robert Saleh. More importantly, the Titans brought in former Giants head coach Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator. Daboll was not good in the main role with Big Blue but helped mold Josh Allen before that as the OC in Buffalo.
Generally speaking, interceptions are often thrown on third down, especially with a longer distance to make. Daboll is being tasked to help improve a 2025 third-down conversion percentage of 31.9 last year for Ward and the Titans, second-worst in the league.
"You gotta have an awareness of situational football because that's when it matters the most," Ward said recently at training camp about third downs. "He warns me when I need to be a better decision-maker, but he never holds me back."
Other QBs that DraftKings is moderately exposed on are new Dolphins starter Malik Willis (+1600), possible Raiders Week 1 starter Kirk Cousins (+7500) and the Seahawks' Sam Darnold (+2200) after he finished with 14 last regular season but still led his team to a Super Bowl title (no picks in the playoffs).
