Peyton Manning was all over our televisions this past NFL season as one-half of the ManningCast dynamic duo with brother Eli. The former NFL quarterback turned pitchman, media personality, and potential NFL franchise owner is never too far from your TV screen. And while he’s made it clear he’s not interested in the traditional path of talking about NFL football games, he does seem very up for doing so in other ways.
Case in point, Peyton stopped by Saturday Night Live this weekend to discuss the NFL’s big divisional weekend games and news of Tom Brady’s potential retirement with Weekend Update host Colin Jost. At least, that was the plan. Instead, Manning had a very specific thing he wanted to discuss instead, Netflix’s Emily in Paris.
Peyton Manning stopped by Update to talk…Emily in Paris? pic.twitter.com/mjq9s09MaD
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) January 30, 2022
“I planned to, but I had an hour to kill before the first game and, just for fun, I put on the first episode of Emily in Paris season two,” said Manning when asked why he didn’t watch last weekend’s exciting NFL playoff games. “And I watched the entire season straight through. Oh my god, Colin. This show has everything. Romance. Adventure. Sensuality. Culture. A fresh take on feminism, finally! Not to mention, a culinary tapestry so rich, I can only describe it as food porn.”
When Jost tried to steer the conversation back to football and get Peyton to comment on the news about Tom Brady, Manning remained single-minded in his focus.
“I’m not sure it’s true. I think it’s probably just speculation. But if it were me, I probably would retire if it gave me more time to watch Emily in Paris,” Manning said. “I really think, for Tom right now, it’s just a tough decision between balancing his career and relationships, sorta like Emily.”
Peyton then broke down Emily’s conundrum through football X’s and O’s, complete with diagrams. Manning also dug into some of the things that make him so excited about Emily in Paris, including the fashion, even donning a beret to complete the bit.
Manning has proven that he can commit to the joke and has some solid comedic timing, though this appearance still pales in comparison to the United Way sketch from his hosting stint on the show.
We’ll have to wait and see what’s next for Manning in his career but a cameo on season three of Emily in Paris now appears to be in the cards.
[SNL]
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.