Eli Manning Jokes Jason Kelce is ‘Probably Hoping’ for Travis to ‘Mess Up’ During Games (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Travis Kelce; Eli Manning; Jason Kelce.Photo:Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty; Mike Coppola/Getty; Lisa Lake/Getty

Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty; Mike Coppola/Getty; Lisa Lake/Getty

The brotherly love is strong in the Kelce and Manning families!

Ahead ofJason Kelce’s broadcasting debut on ESPN’sMonday Night Countdown,Eli Manningshared with PEOPLE his predictions on thefirst-year analyst’s commentarywhenTravis Kelcetakes the field.

“He and Travis have a great relationship,” Eli tells PEOPLE exclusively at a Corona event held in New York City on Aug. 27. “Obviously he’ll want them to win and to play well, but he’s probably hoping for Travis to trip one time or to mess up just so he can call him out,” he jokes.

As the brother of fellow quarterbackPeyton Manning, Eli knows what it’s like to share the field with a sibling, and couldn’t help but bust on the Kelce brothers as their family takes on a new football dynamicsince Jason retired from the NFL after 13 seasonswith the Philadelphia Eagles.

Jason will make his broadcasting debut as a pre-game analyst on Sept. 9 at 6 p.m. ET onMonday Night Countdown. He will sit behind the desk each week throughout the regular season as part of his multi-year agreement with ESPN.

Jason and Travis Kelce.Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty

Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty

“He’s a character,” Eli tells PEOPLE of Jason. “He already does unbelievable job on the podcast and everything he’s doing, so I think he’ll just be natural,” he says in reference to Jason’sNew Heightsshow that he shares with Travis.

As Eli heads into his third year as a broadcaster, his number one tip for Jason ahead of his debut on air is to “let your natural personality come out” — though, he stresses that the Super Bowl winner “does not have a problem doing that.” He adds, “So I think he’ll do a great job.”

Eli Manning; Jason Kelce.Marcus Ingram/Getty; Mitchell Leff/Getty

Marcus Ingram/Getty; Mitchell Leff/Getty

In addition, Eil says Jason’s experiences as along-time center will aid in his commentarybehind the mic as analyst. “He’s also smart playing in the trenches of the offensive line so he knows about defense, he knows about leverage, he knows about run game pass protection.”

And Eli feels that it’s “good” Jason has plans lined up immediately after retirement. As someone who’s been in his shoes, Eli explains: “This is what we’ve been doing our whole lives. So to stay involved, he’s going to know the players because he played against them last year — so he’s going to be pretty fresh in the mind of everything going on, which is good.”

Eli Manning, Corona.Corona

Corona

While Eli officially retired from the NFL after 16 seasons with the New York Giants in January 2020, he’s participating in the sport in other ways —Manningcastaside! The former QB teamed up with Corona to launch Lime Wedge Football, a table-top game perfect for pre-game tailgates this season.

Eli organically came up with the concept when he was shooting a Corona commercial last year. “We were just messing around and had some limes and started flicking,” he says of the game that’s near equivalent to “the old paper football” game.

source: people.com