Manning Tells Rose: Stop ‘Keep Reminding Me About that Older Quarterback’ Thing

RUSH TRANSCRIPT:

ROSE: “Super Bowl 50 was a record setting for Peyton Manning. He is now the oldest starting quarterback on Super Bowl. Manning is also the first quarterback win 200 games in his career and the only quarterback in history to start and win Super Bowl and for two different teams. Peyton Manning is with us now from Santa Clara, California. Good morning and congratulations.”
MANNING: “Hey Charlie, thanks very much. You don’t have to keep reminding me about being the oldest quarterback out there.” (Laughter) [crosstalk]
ROSE: “What I want to know what are you doing for the defense? are you going to give them all new cars? What?”
MANNING: “Well, Von Miller is going to get a car for being the MVP. But I’ve been thanking them all year long, Charlie. And I’ve just been very grateful that I don’t have to play against those guys. I get to practice against them. They don’t get to hit me in practice and it’s not full-speed contact. What a great group of guys to play with. Really the entire team. We have had a bunch of tough, unfish, resilient guys. Our defense has led the way. And I’ve just been very grateful to be a part of the journey with those guys.”
KING: “Peyton, I’m not going to ask you if you’re going to retire, but I will say this — your mom thinks you should retire. Were you a kid that always listened to his mom?”
MANNING: “Sure — well, my mother has been a great support system for me. Eli, my father, certainly. My older brother.”
KING: “That not the question, Peyton! Do you listen to your mom?”
MANNING: “Yeah, I understand, I understand. I tell you, I really haven’t spoken with anybody about it yet. I’ll certainly talk about it with Ashley and I’ll pray about it to the big man upstairs. But, right now, I’m still running on adrenaline and have not gone to sleep tonight and been celebrating all night with family and friends. But I’m very much at peace, Gayle, with however that decision is going to go town and when it goes down. I’m very much at peace about it.”`
O’DONNELL: “We loved hearing you say to Jim Nantz last night that you were going to kiss your wife and kiss your kids and then drink a bunch of beer. So how many beers have you had?”
MANNING: “Well, I’ve done all of those things, you know? I’ve done a lot of kissing with my kids and Ashley. And I’ve had a few Budweiser’s and it’s been a special night. Yeah, I’ve had a chance to be a part of a super bowl team ten years ago at Indianapolis. I remember how special that game was and the celebration. And it’s not something that you want to just rush through. You want to embrace it all. So I’ve done that tonight. And it’s specialit your family to celebrate it and a lot of friends.”
ROSE: “Peyton, what did you say to the team before the game started?”
MANNING: “Well, DeMarcus Ware and I had a chance to address the team last night. He and I were asked by coach Kubiak and he and I did some reflecting on a lot of things that have occurred this season, some serious things, some special memories, also some humorous things. Just kind of thank them for allowing us to be a part of the journey with these guys. We thanked our support staff. You know, to win a Super Bowl, Charlie, it’s so hard just to get here, but to win it, it truly takes a lot of people doing their part. So it was a time to say thank you to a lot of people. Also some time to reflect and just wishing great favor and best wishes for a great game, and it ended up being that way.”
KING: “Peyton, you can’t see Norah and I, but we are wearing orange. Bronco orange in your honor today.”
MANNING: “Good, good.”
KING: “I just want you to know that. But I wonder when you walked down on the field Super Bowl 50, did you feel you had something to prove? I really didn’t feel that way.”
MANNING: “No. I was truly honored to be a part of that game, to be playing in the 50th Super Bowl. I’ve been, obviously, a huge football fan growing up and watched a ton of Super Bowls. And walking out on that field for the pregame warm-ups, it was just about as beautiful a setting as you could possibly imagine. And to be playing in it, I felt so honored and grateful.”
KING: “You have to tell us what was wrong with Eli’s sour-puss face at the end of the game? Did you say, little brother, what is up?”
MANNING: “Eli is just like me. Eli is analyzing the game and thinking about whether we were going for two or whether it was going to be reviewed. Eli is kind of like me. He wasn’t going to relax until that final second ticked off. So I’ve had a great chance to celebrate with Eli. He is very happy and proud of me, just like I’ve always been of him.”
ROSE: “Peyton, if you decide to come back, what is the main reason you would decide to come back? The love of the game?”
MANNING: “Well Charlie, I haven’t — like I said, I haven’t gotten that far yet. Just trying to enjoy this moment and I’m definitely going to take my time doing that.”
ROSE: “Thank you so much.”
KING: “Good to see you. Congrats.”
O’DONNELL: “Congratulation.”
MANNING: “Thank you all!”