50 Fun Facts About Peyton Manning

Which team selected Manning first overall in the 1998 NFL draft?

The Colts took him over Ryan Leaf, who went second to San Diego.

What nickname did Manning earn during his professional career?

Jon Gruden coined it on a 2009 Monday Night Football broadcast while describing Manning's road audibles.

Who is Manning's younger brother, himself a two-time Super Bowl champion?

Peyton went 3-0 against Eli's Giants in the three regular-season Manning Bowls.

How many NFL MVP awards did Manning win, a league record?

Four came with the Colts and one with the Broncos, the last in 2013.

Which team did the Colts beat in Super Bowl XLI?

Manning was named the game's MVP, the first Colts player to win the award since Chuck Howley in Super Bowl V.

Who did the Broncos beat 24-10 in Super Bowl 50, Manning's final game?

The Broncos defense shut down regular-season MVP Cam Newton; Manning threw for just 141 yards.

Manning's last NFL pass was a two-point conversion to which receiver?

It came with 3:08 left in Super Bowl 50 and was the only passing points he scored that night.

Manning wore No. 18 in honor of which brother, who quit football due to spinal stenosis?

Eli later wore the same number at Newman; the school has since retired it.

Which jersey number did the University of Tennessee retire for Manning in 2005?

A street leading to Neyland Stadium was also renamed Peyton Manning Pass.

Which Washington State quarterback was Manning's rival for the top pick in 1998?

Leaf arrived late to his Colts interview while Manning showed up prepared, which swayed the team.

Which Colts general manager had the final say on drafting Manning in 1998?

Manning told him that if the Colts passed, he would come back and beat them.

Who was Manning's head coach during his rookie season?

Mora later delivered the famous "Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs" rant after a 2001 loss.

Who beat Manning for the 1997 Heisman Trophy?

Manning became the fourth Tennessee player to finish as Heisman runner-up.

During the 2011 lockout, Manning rehabbed his neck with which baseball team's trainers?

He wanted no witnesses to his recovery, so he worked at Coors Field rather than the Colts facility.

Whose single-season record of 48 touchdown passes did Manning break in 2004?

The 49th came on a 21-yard pass to Brandon Stokley against San Diego after Manning waved off the punt team.

How many touchdown passes did Manning throw in 2013, an NFL single-season record?

Number 51 broke Tom Brady's mark; the last four came in a first-half-only finale against Oakland.

Manning's 2013 single-season passing yards record beat whose mark by one yard?

Brees later returned the favour, breaking Manning's career yardage record in 2018.

Manning threw seven touchdowns in the 2013 opener against which defending champion?

He was the first player since 1969 to throw seven in a game, and he did it without an interception.

Which Monday Night Football analyst is credited with coining Manning's nickname in 2009?

Gruden was describing how Manning ran audibles at the line of scrimmage on the road.

Manning's production studio is named after which trademark audible call?

Omaha Productions, founded in 2020, makes Peyton's Places and the Quarterback docuseries.

In 2012 Manning bought 21 Colorado franchises of which pizza chain?

He sold his shares in February 2018.

Manning voiced the bull Guapo in which 2017 animated film?

He had earlier voiced himself, with Eli and Cooper, in a 2009 episode of The Simpsons.

Whose career record did Manning pass with his 509th touchdown pass in 2014?

The throw went to Demaryius Thomas against the 49ers on Sunday Night Football.

Who was Manning's head coach in his final season, 2015?

Kubiak was Manning's fifth NFL head coach; he benched him during a four-interception game against Kansas City.

Which backup replaced Manning for six games during the 2015 season?

Denver went 4-2 without Manning before he returned in relief in the regular-season finale.

How many consecutive games did Manning start to open his career, an NFL record?

The streak ended when the Colts ruled him out for the 2011 opener after neck surgery.

Whose record of 22 straight regular-season wins did Manning break in 2009?

McMahon's streak came with the Bears from 1984 to 1987; Manning's 23rd came against Jacksonville.

Denver's No. 18 was retired for which quarterback, who let Manning wear it?

Tripucka was the original Broncos quarterback in 1960.

Super Bowl 50 set a record for the age gap between starting QBs: how many years?

Manning was 39 and Cam Newton 26; the record has since been surpassed twice.

A bronze statue of Manning stands outside which venue?

It was unveiled in October 2017, the same weekend the Colts retired his number.

What was the Colts' record in 2011, the season Manning missed entirely?

The collapse handed them the first pick and Andrew Luck.

Which veteran did the Colts sign out of retirement to start the 2011 opener?

Collins was named interim starter the day Manning was ruled out, ending his 208-game streak.

Which Stanford quarterback did the Colts draft first overall after releasing Manning?

Manning was released on March 7, 2012, partly to avoid a $28 million roster bonus.

Manning attended which New Orleans high school, leading the Greenies to a 34-5 record?

He passed for 7,207 yards and 92 touchdowns in three seasons as a starter there.

Which Hall of Fame quarterback, then a Broncos executive, recruited Manning to Denver?

Manning signed a five-year, $96 million deal on March 20, 2012.

Which team, from Manning's hometown, beat the Colts in Super Bowl XLIV?

It was the Saints' first Super Bowl title in franchise history.

Who returned a Manning interception 74 yards for a touchdown in Super Bowl XLIV?

The pass was intended for Reggie Wayne on 3rd and 5 with 3:24 left.

In what year did Manning first host Saturday Night Live, on his 31st birthday?

Eli hosted the show five years later.

Which Simpsons episode featured the Manning brothers as guest voices?

Bart dreams of a baby brother and sees famous sibling acts, from the Marx Brothers to the Mario Brothers.

Which quiz show revival did Manning host in 2021, with a brother as sidekick?

It was renewed for a second season in 2022.

What is the name of Manning's charity for disadvantaged kids?

It focuses on Louisiana, Tennessee, Indiana and Colorado, the four states of his football life.

In 2025 Manning joined the ownership group of which NWSL club?

He has also publicly expressed interest in owning a piece of the Broncos.

Manning plays Laird in which 2025 film starring Will Arnett?

Bradley Cooper directed it.

Manning finished his college degree in three years in which subject?

He then announced at Thompson-Boling Arena that he was staying for his senior year anyway.

In 2003 the Colts erased a 21-point deficit in the final four minutes against which team?

It remains the only time an NFL team won after trailing by 21 inside the last four minutes of regulation.

In which city did Manning marry Ashley on St. Patrick's Day 2001?

Ashley, a Virginia graduate, was introduced to him by her parents' next-door neighbour.

Who shared the 2003 AP NFL MVP award with Manning?

It was the first of Manning's five MVPs and the only shared one.

Which running back beat Manning to the 2005 MVP award?

Manning had to settle for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award that season.

How long did the Hall of Fame committee take to debate Manning's 2021 selection?

He was elected in his first year of eligibility and inducted on August 8, 2021.

Who coached the Colts when Manning won Super Bowl XLI?

Dungy retired after the 2008 season and was replaced by Jim Caldwell.