The Colts are 5- or 5½-point favorites at most Las Vegas sportbooks as the biggest football betting weekend of the season begins.

Where will the money go in the next two days? If the early returns are any indication, the public will favor Indianapolis.

"We look like we're going to need the Saints because the Colts money is outpacing the Saints money," said Jay Rood, the race and sportsbook director at MGM Mirage.

Another oddsmaker suggested the line could go up.

"In my opinion, I wouldn't be surprised if it closed 'six,' " said Sean Van Patten, an oddsmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

At MGM Mirage, the Colts are favored by five points and have been favored by as much as 5½. The line dropped to 4½, but "that sort of stimulated the bettors to go back the Colts."

Reasons some bettors may have been backing the Saints early this week, when the line fell at a good number of sportsbooks, include Colts DE Dwight Freeney's ankle injury and the feeling that New Orleans represented good betting value, particularly if the line sat at 5½ or 6. Rood said he's noticed that so-called "sharps," or professional bettors whose wagers make oddsmakers stand up and take notice, have been betting the Saints at plus-6 when the line has gotten that high at other sportsbooks.

Professional bettors have also liked betting the Colts to win straight-up on the money line, Rood said. As of Friday night, the Colts were minus-220 on the money line at MGM Mirage, meaning a bettor would have to risk $22 to to win $10 for a total return of $32 if Indy raises the Lombardi Trophy for the second time in three years. The betting public, Rood said, prefers the underdog on the money line in the Super Bowl. As of this morning, according to VegasInsider.com, the Saints were plus-180 on the money line at MGM Mirage, meaning a bettor would win $18 for every $10 wagered if New Orleans pulled off the upset.