"He regrets reaching out to me": Peyton Manning does not consider himself to be Arch Manning's favorite uncle
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning comes from a football legacy; his uncles Peyton and Eli Manning are among the best quarterbacks in NFL history while his grandfather Archie is in the Saints Hall of Fame.
On the "Up & Adams Show," host Kay Adams asked Peyton who was Arch's favorite uncle.
"Oh, I don't know. You have to ask him that," Peyton replied. "We're his uncles. We've tried to be there as a resource for him. Look, he's getting great coaching from Steve Sarkisian and that staff, and that's why he went there—to get coached by them.
"So, I think just like any college quarterback who has support from their family, their uncles, that's what we do. And like I said, we root hard for him and try to be there when he wants to have a conversation."
The two-time Super Bowl champion made an argument on why he might not be Arch's favorite uncle.
"I think he sometimes regrets reaching out to me," the former Colts quarterback said. "This past spring, he called and texted me with a question about a two-minute drill. Three eight-minute voice memos later, after I left him all the details of a two-minute drill, I think he thought, 'You know what, I probably could have gotten this information somewhere else.'"
"So, I don't bother him by any means. I wish him luck before the game, congratulate him after they play, and just try to support him," he added.
Kay Adams suggested that since Arch Manning wears No. 16, the same number Peyton used to wear, he could be his role model and favorite uncle. However, the former quarterback wasn't sold on that idea.
"I don't know. I mean, I don't know if Eli is going the voice memo route. So I think I'm probably annoying my nephew. So it's probably Eli right now," Peyton replied.
Peyton Manning believes Arch Manning made the right decision to stay at Texas
Before the start of the season, with senior quarterback Quinn Ewers returning for another year, there was growing speculation that Arch Manning may enter the transfer portal.
However, he decided to stay with the Longhorns and learn under Steve Sarkisian. His uncle Peyton Manning believes he made the right call.
"I'm proud of Arch. I'm proud of him," Peyton Manning said on The Pat McAfee Show. "Most kids probably wouldn't have stayed in that situation. He went to Texas because he wanted to play at Texas.
"He wanted to go to college and play for (Steve) Sarkisian... most of the right reasons you should choose a college. I'm glad he's staying there. He and Quinn (Ewers) have a great relationship and I think Quinn is going to have a great year," he added.
While Ewers is the starting quarterback this year, Arch Manning has a chance to get the full-time role next season.
He impressed during Ewers' absence due to an abdominal strain, leading his team to back-to-back victories.