It seems Ocean City, Md. Mayor Rick Meehan is a little jealous of all the free publicity Peyton Manning gave Omaha in recent years.
With Manning hanging up his cleats one week ago, Meehan is wondering what audible will replace the famous "Omaha!" Manning so often yelled out.
So Meehan's trying to sell Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco on using – I think – "Ocean City!"
"I'm Rick Meehan, Mayor of Ocean City, Maryland (OCMD), and I'm here to recommend you pick our wonderful town to help take your legacy to new heights," Meehan said in a letter addressed to Flacco and mailed to the team's training facility.
Oh boy, here comes the sales pitch.
"Whether you're looking for a fun vacation spot to enjoy during the offseason with your family, a romantic weekend getaway or a golf weekend with the guys, OCMD has what you're looking for. With OCMD's 10 miles of beautiful free beach and nearly three miles of food, games and shopping along our famous boardwalk, it seems like the obvious choice."
C'mon, Joe. It's obvious!
"Now Joe, we Marylanders won't forget your march to the Super Bowl in 2013. Many OCMD residents are Ravens fans, and we have grown to love hearing your iconic "ALASKA!" call that has become part of your game," Meehan wrote.
"While I certainly don't want to tell you how to play, I can't help but wonder what would happen if you narrowed your choice of audible down from a state to a city—like OCMD, perhaps. I have a feeling that even more personal and team success could be in your future!"
I'm failing to see the correlation here, but continue …
"I hope you take this request into consideration, and know that OCMD is ready to be part of your career long term. We hope to see you soon and wish you the best of luck this season!" Meehan concluded.
Meehan even sweetened the pot with a free tub of caramel corn, sand bucket (with shovel), two mini inflatable beach balls and what looks to be two Ocean City plastic cups. Now we're talkin!
But before we talk about audibles, Meehan has to convince Joe to stop going to the Jersey beaches near his hometown and instead come down to Ocean City.
Oh, and don't think we didn't notice that you also invited Ben Roethlisberger!?!?!, Eli Manning and Kirk Cousins to also use "Ocean City" as their audible term.
