Craft Breweries Are Sending Peyton Manning Beer So He’ll Stop Drinking Budweiser

As you’ve probably already seen, Denver Broncos quarterback (for now) Peyton Manning pulled a solid NASCAR impersonation after Super Bowl 50 by mentioning a corporate product, Budweiser, by name.

“I’ll take some time to reflect. I’ve got a couple of priorities first. I want to go kiss my wife and my kids. I want to go hug my family. I’m going to drink a lot of Budweiser tonight, Tracy, I promise you that,” Manning told CBS reporter Tracy Wolfson when asked about his possible retirement.

The whole thing screamed of laughably blatant product placement, but according to Budweiser, Manning didn’t receive a dime for giving the beer a shout-out:

Manning and the Broncos did, however, get free beer from Bud. Per ESPN.com, Anheuser-Busch sent 50 cases of Bud, or 1,200 bottles, to a Broncos afterparty. In response, Manning is now getting a bunch of craft beer from the Brewers Association, which would rather not see Manning down a cold “macro-brew”:

So, the Brewers Association (publishers of CraftBeer.com) put together a care package for the talented quarterback in hopes of helping him find another post-game refreshment. Since Peyton happens to play in one of the most beer-centric states in the nation, we made sure to include a good number of beers that were local to Colorado in addition to a few other classic and approachable options from around the country.

Additionally, the Indianapolis Star notes “Left Hand Brewing Co. in Colorado is offering Peyton Manning — and anyone else there — a free pint of beer in exchange for an empty bottle or can of Budweiser from 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. Tuesday. Company spokeswoman Emily Armstrong said: ‘We believe that our quarterback in Colorado deserves better and this craft brew is for you.'”

Manning, however, owns some shares in Anheuser-Busch wholesalers, so it’s quite unlikely he’ll be taking up any free craft beer anytime soon.

(Via CBS Sports)