How did Peyton Manning’s ‘Omaha’ originate? Eli Manning reveals secret behind iconic play call

Eli Manning, left, Peyton Manning, right
Eli Manning, left, Peyton Manning, right

Peyton Manning is known for many things both on and off the football field, one of them being his popular signal call, "Omaha," at the line of scrimmage. He even named his entertainment production company, "Omaha Productions."

Fans and the football world picked up on his slogan around 2015, but many don't know where he got it from.

According to Peyton's younger brother Eli, Peyton stole the call from Eli. Appearing on "The Dan Patrick Show" recently, Eli told host Dan Patrick how the "Omaha" call was incorporated into the Giants' offense in 2004 when they brought in offensive coordinator John Hufnagel.

Eli then said that he technically stole the call from Tom Brady, who was under Hufnagel the season before in New England.

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"First off, I think we gotta set the record straight," Eli Manning said. "I used Omaha way before Peyton ever used it. He stole it, he stole it. It was in our playbook, he used it the exact same way. Our offensive coordinator from New England brought it, so I technically stole it from Tom Brady, and we used it for a long time.
"Then around 2015-ish, that's the year they must have really turned up the microphone, and Peyton played a playoff game, and he must have said Omaha 85 times in the game, and everybody is like, 'What is going on?'"

Peyton Manning opened up during his NFL career on what "Omaha" meant

Peyton Manning during Washington Commanders vs. Denver Broncos
Peyton Manning during Washington Commanders vs. Denver Broncos

During his time with the Denver Broncos, Peyton Manning became popular for yelling "Omaha" before a snap.

When asked what Omaha meant by the media during his time with the Broncos, Manning trolled the media by saying it could mean one of several different things.

"I've had a lot of people ask what Omaha means," Peyton Manning said. "It's a run play, but it could be a pass play or a play-action pass, depending on a couple of things. The wind, which way we're going, quarter and the jerseys that we're wearing, so, it varies really play to play. So there's your answer to that."
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What Peyton failed to mention was he got the call from Eli Manning. Thanks to Eli, we now know where Peyton Manning got his famous snap call slogan from.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Eli Manning, "The Dan Patrick Show" and H/T Sportskeeda.

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Edited by R. Elahi
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