THE SCOOP
Peyton Manning can’t stop shouting Nebraska’s largest city.
The Broncos quarterback used the word “Omaha” loudly and often while audibling during Sunday’s playoff victory over San Diego. According to an NFL.com video montage, Manning barked “Omaha” before the ball was snapped 44 times.
The reason for the word choice, if there is one, is known only to Manning and the Broncos. It likely is a signal to teammates to change the play or a formation. One tweet opined that it was a call to switch the side of the field the play was called to, meaning it stood for opposite.
Whatever the reason, it provided some unexpected publicity for the city of 427,000, perhaps best known as the home of both billionaire Warren Buffett and Fortune 500 insurance company Mutual of Omaha.
Omaha, in fact, was a trending topic on Twitter during the game and the Greater Omaha Convention and Visitors Bureau jumped aboard, tweeting: “We certainly appreciate all the love from Peyton Manning :)”
Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce President and CEO David Brown said he was watching and wondered how his agency could capitalize. Brown said he wants to explore hiring Manning, one of the sporting world’s top pitchmen, to shoot a promotional ad. “We’d be foolish not to,” Brown said.
HISTORY
Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers have conquered the bitter cold of Green Bay and the travails of a cross-country flight to Carolina. Now they face their toughest test yet to get back to the Super Bowl: overcoming the deafening noise of Seattle’s 12th-man home crowd and a swarming Seahawks defense that shut down the reigning NFC champion 49ers in Week 2.
The numbers: The 49ers have committed seven turnovers and been outscored 71-16 in their past two trips to Seattle, including an embarrassing 29-3 defeat in September.
One final number: This is San Francisco’s third consecutive NFC title game. making coach Jim Harbaugh the first in NFL history to accomplish such a feat in the first three seasons with a team.
INJURY UPDATE
Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. is out for the rest of the postseason after an MRI on Monday revealed a torn ACL in his left knee. “There’s no doubt he’s one of our better performers on defense throughout this season, but … we’ve lost some pretty good performers throughout the season and this team’s been resilient,” coach John Fox said. Once Harris left Sunday’s game, the Charges picked on replacement Quentin Jammer to stage their comeback.
BY THE NUMBERS
2006
The last time the Patriots played on the road in the AFC playoff bracket and they lost 38-34 at Indianapolis to Peyton Manning and the Colts.
HE SAID IT
“He’s an amazing storyteller. He is a poet of life. A man that was all about family.” — 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh about his grandfather, Joe Cipiti, who died at age 98 on Sunday morning in Ohio.
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