USA TODAY US Edition

Will QB’S play action be star turn or stage fright?

- By Heather Tucker

Eli Manning is following big brother Peyton again. This time it’s to the hallowed halls of Studio 8H, where the sketch comedy show Saturday

Night Live is in its 37th season. Manning will host the May 5 episode, NBC announced during a commerical break of its broadcast Saturday. By Sunday morning, the Twittersph­ere revealed a mixture of surprise and skepticism over the choice of a player some may describe as wooden in interview situations.

-CNBC sports business reporter Darren Rovell (@ darrenrove­ll): Guy with the most on the line with Eli Manning’s hosting of SNL on May 5? His IMG marketing agent Alan Zucker.

-Todd (@ trc414) : I just hope they don’t give him any speaking roles.

-Marielle (@Marielle92­2): We’ll finally know, without a doubt, who the better Manning is.

Eli, who helped lead the New York Giants to his second Super Bowl win in February, joins Tom Brady, Fran Tarkenton, Joe Montana and Peyton among NFL quarterbac­ks who have gotten the gig.

Eli Manning will be making his first hosting appearance on the show, but he’s no rookie when it comes to live action. He appeared in the audience with his parents during the opening monologue for Peyton’s only hosting spot, a 2007 appearance after he led the Indianapol­is Colts to a Super Bowl victory.

Peyton’s performanc­e that night generated plenty of laughs and one of the most talked about digital sketches of the decade, a parody of the NFL’S United Way ads. Google either Peyton or Eli Manning and SNL and the first hit is video from that skit, so Eli has his work cut out.

While the brothers have made commercial­s together, including spots for ESPN and Oreo, that format allows for mistakes and botched handoffs. The stage at Rockefelle­r Center will not be so kind.

For a player who isn’t the most gregarious or funny in interviews, this could prove more challengin­g than learning the Giants playbook. If the two-time Super Bowl MVP can’t engage the audience — or the likes of Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader — musical guest Rihanna should.

 ?? By Matt Detrich, The Indianapol­is Star ?? No show: Eli Manning has been less than dazzling in media conference­s.
By Matt Detrich, The Indianapol­is Star No show: Eli Manning has been less than dazzling in media conference­s.

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