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          Stafford, LeBron, Saban, oh my. What we learned from Week 3 of Monday Night Football with Peyton & Eli

          • Tory Barron, ESPN EditorSep 28, 2021, 03:30 AM
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              Tory Barron is a Bristol-based writer and editor for ESPN.com. After retiring from playing lacrosse at UConn, the DC native decided to try her hand at writing about people playing sports.
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          If you thought Peyton and Eli Manning's Monday Night Football telecast had peaked when Rob Gronkowski and Pat McAfee joined the show, you were wrong.

          As it turns out, Week 2 was merely a warm-up for what was about to unfold in Week 3 (no disrespect to "Red Zone Robby G" or McAfee) when Matthew Stafford, LeBron James, Nick Saban and Chris Long called in for the NFC East showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.

          The undeniably elite guest list was just the beginning, as anyone who watched knows the true star of the night was one Eli "Shakira" Manning (just keep reading).

          From the Manning bros providing some of the most insightful analysis you'll hear during a football game to Eli doing his best Dak Prescott impression -- and mercilessly trolling Peyton for his pit stains -- here is what we learned from the latest installment of the ManningCast:

          Eli is doing amazing ...

          Not only did Eli get rave reviews from his mom for his performance in Weeks 1 and 2, the two-time Super Bowl MVP was also broadcasting sans footwear -- just socks.

          Eli heals ...

          On Sunday, Eli had his jersey retired by the New York Giants. On Monday, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick -- who are set to face off in Week 4 in Brady's first game back in New England since leaving the Patriots -- both appeared in a tribute video for Eli, prompting Peyton to exclaim:

          "You're a healer. You're a bonder, bro."

          Eli's hips don't lie ...

          Eli decided to demonstrate how Dak Prescott "creates torque" by loosening his hips during his pregame warm-up routine. After Eli likened himself to Shakira, Peyton was rendered speechless, commenting, "I've got nothing for you. I'm going to let that sink in for our viewers."

          The Manning bros can't help chirping each other ...

          Once he had composed himself again, Peyton was quick to blame Eli's "boys medium jeans" for his inability to turn as well as the Cowboys QB.

          To the surprise of absolutely no one, the sibling-on-sibling crime was far from one-sided as Eli chose to draw attention to Peyton's pit stains and imply his older brother lacked athleticism:

          "Keep those arms down, Peyton. I know Dad will have that in his feedback for next week. Next week arms down." -- Eli on Peyton having sweat stains

          "Has anyone ever called you a freak before? I know not athletically." -- Eli to Peyton in response to a tweet calling his older brother a "freak"

          Stafford balled out at Manning camp ...

          The Manning Passing Academy has seen its fair share of distinguished campers, but Matthew Stafford made a lasting impression back in 2008 when he "threw the tightest spiral."

          Peyton shared that neither he nor Eli wanted to throw after the Los Angeles Rams star, with Eli joking, "I'm gonna throw after the guy from Dartmouth."

          The Dartmouth QB deserved better.

          It could have been Peyton to LeBron all day ...

          In the latest edition of "What if LeBron chose football instead of basketball?" Peyton couldn't help but entertain the type of duo he and King James would have been.

          Saban has nothing but respect for Hurts ...

          As college football fans know, after Jalen Hurts was replaced by Tua Tagovailoa, the Eagles quarterback left Alabama to play a season with the Oklahoma Sooners. But that doesn't mean there is any bad blood between Nick Saban and the former Crimson Tide QB. In fact, it's quite the opposite.

          The Manning bros are taking a break until Week 7. Until then we'll be pondering if Eli lives with his parents ...