The final “ManningCast” of the 2021 NFL season will have an impressive guest list, featuring two NFL legends and arguably one of the biggest entertainers in the industry. Future Hall of Fame wide receiver and Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald will be the first guest on the “ManningCast” followed by XFL owner Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson will cap off the night.
Fitzgerald has caught 1,432 passes for 17,492 yards and 121 touchdowns in his Hall of Fame career, all with the Cardinals (who are playing the Los Angeles Rams in the final wild card playoff matchup of the weekend). He’s second only to Jerry Rice in receptions and receiving yards and sixth all time in receiving touchdowns. Fitzgerald holds 24 NFL records and 40 franchise records, etching himself as one of the greatest players in NFL history. He sat out the 2021 NFL reason and has not officially announced his retirement from the league.
Wilson is coming off his first losing season as a starting quarterback, but finished his 2021 campaign completing 64.8% of his passes for 3,113 yards with 25 touchdowns to six interceptions (103.1 rating) in 14 games. Wilson’s future with the Seahawks may be up in the air, but Seattle plans on running it back with their star quarterback for 2022 (even if Wilson may want to explore options).
With Fitzgerald not playing and the Seahawks eliminated from the postseason, there is no “Manningcast”http://www.cbssports.com/”curse” for next week. Active players have appeared as guests on the “ManningCast” throughout the season and the results have been less than desirable for their teams — and in some instances their own health — the following week. Each team lost in the next week after their star player appeared on the “ManningCast.” The starting quarterbacks for those teams are 0-5. Wilson already was a guest on the “ManningCast” in Week 1 this year, losing 33-30 to the Tennessee Titans the next week.
The Mannings — nor Omaha productions — won’t have to worry about any “curse” for this week’s production. Perhaps that is the plan going forward after all the poor luck active NFL players who appeared on the broadcast endured in 2021.
