ESPN and Omaha Productions Unveil 2026 ManningCast Schedule With Star-Studded Heist Film

ESPN and Omaha Productions have released the full 2026 schedule for ‘Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli’ – the alternate telecast known as the ManningCast – via a 15-minute short film titled ‘ManningCast: Heist.’ The film, which debuted on September 8, features approximately 40 cameos from Hollywood actors, current and former NFL players, and even NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The schedule release video follows Peyton and Eli Manning as they attempt an ‘Ocean’s Eleven’-style heist to break into NFL headquarters and adjust the ManningCast schedule. The star-studded cast includes Anne Hathaway, Jon Hamm, Paul Rudd, Larry David, Glen Powell, Serena Williams, Rob Gronkowski, Marshawn Lynch, and brothers Jason and Travis Kelce.

Sixth Season Includes 11 Regular-Season Games and Super Bowl LXI

The 2026 season marks the sixth campaign for the ManningCast. The broadcast will air on ESPN2 for 11 regular-season Monday Night Football games, plus a special presentation of Super Bowl LXI on February 14, 2027. The Super Bowl telecast will be simulcast on ABC and ESPN.

The regular-season schedule begins September 14 with the Denver Broncos visiting the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. Other marquee matchups include a Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles NFC East showdown on October 26, a Buffalo Bills-Los Angeles Rams game on October 12, and a late-season visit to Lambeau Field for the Houston Texans-Green Bay Packers on January 4.

The full 2026 ManningCast schedule is as follows: Sept. 14 – Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs; Sept. 21 – New York Giants at Los Angeles Rams; Oct. 5 – Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints; Oct. 12 – Buffalo Bills at Los Angeles Rams; Oct. 26 – Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles; Nov. 2 – Chicago Bears at Seattle Seahawks; Nov. 16 – Los Angeles Chargers at Baltimore Ravens; Nov. 23 – Cincinnati Bengals at Washington Commanders; Dec. 7 – Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks; Dec. 21 – New England Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs; Jan. 4 – Houston Texans at Green Bay Packers; and Feb. 14 – Super Bowl LXI.

New ‘Manning Mode’ Feature Added for 2026

This season introduces ‘Manning Mode,’ an immersive Xs and Os experience that Peyton and Eli will enter multiple times during each broadcast. Powered by the NFL’s Next Gen Stats and Adrenaline’s TruPlay AI, Manning Mode delivers real-time data, advanced analytics and predictive insights on screen, giving fans a view of the game through the eyes of two Hall of Fame quarterbacks.

SportsCenter Special Airs on ESPN2

ESPN2 aired a 30-minute SportsCenter special on Tuesday, September 8, at 6 p.m. ET, showcasing ‘ManningCast: Heist’ for the first time. The special featured Peyton and Eli Manning offering behind-the-scenes commentary on the campaign and highlighting some of the biggest matchups on this season’s schedule.

‘The tone of the heist is sort of a larger metaphor for the show itself,’ Omaha Productions president Jamie Horowitz told The Hollywood Reporter. ‘The Manningcast is meant to be a safe space, a show where everybody can just come on and talk about a love of football. And you may have heard this before, but Omaha has very pure brand values – we try to uplift and unify – and we hope you see that in everything we do. And we also hope that people feel those values in that piece. This video is trying to be just a joyride of fun.’

According to Therese Andrews, head of production at Omaha, planning for the reveal started in late 2024, with production beginning in early 2025 at the Pro Bowl. ‘We map out the cameo roles early on when we do the script, thinking about what kind of people we want, and then we chip away throughout the entirety of the year to see how to build into that,’ Andrews said. ‘The process with the creative is both scripted and it’s also sort of improv as we go. So as we book certain people, we’re reshaping the creative based on who we think is gettable, who might be interested in it, and then we rework every time we film with somebody.’

Omaha executives credited the ManningCast itself as a key factor in attracting such a wide array of talent. ‘I think part of the reason that Paul Rudd, Kevin Hart, or David Letterman appears on the Manningcast is because we do things like this,’ Horowitz said. ‘If the Manningcast was just a football show, Peyton and Eli probably could still recruit lots of great people. But the more you see these types of projects from Omaha outside of Monday night, the more likely creative people want to be part of our little world.’

The 2026 season is particularly significant for ESPN, as the network will broadcast its first Super Bowl. The ManningCast’s Super Bowl LXI presentation will cap a season that also includes one additional regular-season game to be announced later. The ManningCast airs every Monday night at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and the ESPN App.