After Eli Manning coached the NFC to a 64-59 victory over Peyton Manning and the AFC on Sunday afternoon, his nephew suggested the game was rigged.
“You know the refs won the game,” Marshall Manning told Eli at midfield. “It’s scripted. It’s scripted.”
Conspiracy theorists will point to Marshall’s comments as evidence that the NFL is rigged, but a more likely explanation is that Marshall has adopted his father’s signature sense of humor and entertainment.
When Peyton broke the NFL’s touchdown record in 2014, Denver Broncos wide receivers played keep away with the football when the QB went to collect it. We later found out that Peyton had the WRs rehearse that moment at practice before the game.
The record was real. The pass was real. But the funny-in-the-moment reaction was staged by Peyton himself. It’s possible that Marshall’s Pro Bowl comments were also planted. At the very least, Marshall could have picked up on the faux beef between Peyton and Eli and he took advantage of an opportune time to add fuel to the narrative fire.
Now I sound like a conspiracy theorist.
Regardless of whether or not Marshall was being serious, it was a funny — and entertaining — moment at the Pro Bowl. Like father, like son.