NFL Hall of Famer Peyton Manning is one of the best quarterbacks in history, but his technology game away from the field left a lot to be desired.
In an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Manning, 49, explained why he “held out as long as I could on the smartphone.”
“I had a flip phone up until 2012,” said Manning, who produces the History Channel’s The Mega-Brands That Built America. “I was kind of a dinosaur when I got released by the [Indianapolis] Colts and became an NFL free agent.”
Manning was released by the Colts in March 2012 after 11 seasons with the franchise, winning a Super Bowl with the team in 2007.
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“NFL teams were sending me information about their coaching staff, about their roster, about their playbooks,” Manning recalled. “I was traveling and trying to figure out this new chapter of my life in trying to figure out a new team to go play for.”
He continued, “I needed to have an iPhone to be able to download the attachments and see what these teams were sending me. I was setting up meetings with teams and talking to them. I needed to kind of know a little bit about them. If I had the flip phone, I would have been stuck.”
Manning added, “If I never became a free agent, I would probably still have a flip phone.”
The quarterback signed with the Denver Broncos days after his release, where he would play the final four seasons of his career, winning another Super Bowl in 2015.
Manning’s The Mega-Brands That Built America, which is currently airing its third season, is the result of his passion as “a history buff.”
“It started back in school,” Manning explained. “History was one of my favorite subjects. Growing up in New Orleans, there was New Orleans and Louisiana history. Certainly military and world history. I’ve taken several bucket list vacations since I stopped playing.”
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Manning and his wife of 24 years, Ashley Thompson, share 14-year-old fraternal twins, son Marshall and daughter Mosley.
The Mega-Brands That Built America, which explores the origin stories of some of the most successful brand names in history, has become a bonding experience for the Mannings.
“It’s a good show to watch with your family,” Manning said. “My kids watch it. They learn something. My wife and I learn something. That’s what I like about it.”
New episodes of The Mega-Brands That Built America air on The History Channel Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.
