Recap: Broncos 34, Raiders 14
SportsDirect Inc. staff
Dec 29, 2013
Broncos 34, Raiders 14: Peyton Manning threw for 266 yards and four touchdowns in a record-setting performance as visiting Denver wrapped up the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
Manning (5,477 yards) played only the first half but broke Drew Brees' single-season yardage record as the Broncos became the first team to eclipse 600 points (606) in a season, shattering the mark of 589 set by New England in 2007. Demaryius Thomas had six catches for 113 yards and two scoring receptions for Denver, which will have a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Terrelle Pryor, returning to the starting lineup, completed 21-of-38 for 207 yards and two touchdowns - both in the final 4 1/2 minutes - for Oakland (4-12), which fell behind 31-0 at halftime and closed the season with six consecutive defeats. It marked the sixth time in 11 seasons the Raiders have lost at least 12 games.
Manning, who needed 266 yards to break Brees' yardage mark, reached the milestone on his final pass of the game - a 5-yard scoring pass to Thomas with 13 seconds left in the half. Manning was replaced by Brock Osweiler in the second half after extending his single-season record to 55 touchdown passes.
Denver scored twice in an 88-second span of the first quarter on short scoring passes to Eric Decker and Knowshon Moreno for a 14-0 lead and tied New England's record on Matt Prater's 34-yard field goal early in the second quarter. Manning connected with Thomas on a 63-yard scoring strike seven minutes later before concluding his 25-for-28 performance with the 5-yard toss to Thomas.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Manning had his 11th game with at least three TD passes this season, five more than any other QB. ... Pryor, who opened the season as the starter before losing his job due to injury and ineffectiveness, ran for 49 yards and finished with 576, breaking the franchise single-season mark held by Rich Gannon. ... Thomas surpassed 90 catches (92) and 1,400 yards (1,430) for the second straight season and finished with a team-high 14 TDs.
Dec 29, 2013
Broncos 34, Raiders 14: Peyton Manning threw for 266 yards and four touchdowns in a record-setting performance as visiting Denver wrapped up the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
Manning (5,477 yards) played only the first half but broke Drew Brees' single-season yardage record as the Broncos became the first team to eclipse 600 points (606) in a season, shattering the mark of 589 set by New England in 2007. Demaryius Thomas had six catches for 113 yards and two scoring receptions for Denver, which will have a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Terrelle Pryor, returning to the starting lineup, completed 21-of-38 for 207 yards and two touchdowns - both in the final 4 1/2 minutes - for Oakland (4-12), which fell behind 31-0 at halftime and closed the season with six consecutive defeats. It marked the sixth time in 11 seasons the Raiders have lost at least 12 games.
Manning, who needed 266 yards to break Brees' yardage mark, reached the milestone on his final pass of the game - a 5-yard scoring pass to Thomas with 13 seconds left in the half. Manning was replaced by Brock Osweiler in the second half after extending his single-season record to 55 touchdown passes.
Denver scored twice in an 88-second span of the first quarter on short scoring passes to Eric Decker and Knowshon Moreno for a 14-0 lead and tied New England's record on Matt Prater's 34-yard field goal early in the second quarter. Manning connected with Thomas on a 63-yard scoring strike seven minutes later before concluding his 25-for-28 performance with the 5-yard toss to Thomas.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Manning had his 11th game with at least three TD passes this season, five more than any other QB. ... Pryor, who opened the season as the starter before losing his job due to injury and ineffectiveness, ran for 49 yards and finished with 576, breaking the franchise single-season mark held by Rich Gannon. ... Thomas surpassed 90 catches (92) and 1,400 yards (1,430) for the second straight season and finished with a team-high 14 TDs.
