SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 19, 2014
Broncos 42, 49ers 17: Peyton Manning shattered the NFL record for career scoring passes, throwing for 318 yards and four touchdowns as host Denver pummeled San Francisco.
Manning needed three TDs to eclipse Brett Favre's all-time mark of 508 and set the record before halftime, carving up the 49ers by completing 22-of-26 and registering a passer rating of 157.2 as the Broncos (5-1) won their third straight to move into sole possession of first place in the AFC West. Demaryius Thomas made eight catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns while Ronnie Hillman rushed for 74 yards and a pair of scores.
Colin Kaepernick was sacked six times and finished 24-of-39 for 263 yards with one touchdown and one costly interception for San Francisco (4-3), which gave up 21 unanswered points in the third quarter to halt their three-game winning streak. Stevie Johnson had five receptions for 79 yards and a score for the 49ers.
The first half served as a coronation for Manning, who tossed a touchdown pass on three of the first four possessions as Denver bolted to a 21-3 lead. Manning tied Favre when he found Welker for a 39-yard strike down the left sideline with 2:57 left in the first quarter and claimed the record late in the second with an 8-yard pass to Thomas in the end zone for No. 509, setting off a celebration of hugs and high-fives with his teammates.
Kaepernick gave the 49ers some much-needed momentum when he capped an 80-yard march with a 4-yard TD pass to Johnson with 11 seconds left in the half to cut the deficit to 21-10, and the Niners forced a three-and-out on the opening possession of the second half. It turned just as quickly after an awful overthrow by Kaepernick was picked off by Aqib Talib at San Francisco's 40.
Manning went for the jugular on the very next play, hitting Thomas in stride for a 40-yard scoring strike to make it 28-10. Hillman added scoring runs of 37 and 1 yard later in the third quarter as the lead ballooned to 42-10.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Manning extended his own league record with his 33rd game with four scoring passes to give him multiple TDs in 156 consecutive games - second only to Favre (159) in NFL history. ... RB Frank Gore was limited to only 20 yards rushing on nine carries for the 49ers, who were missing Pro Bowl LB Patrick Willis and rookie CB Jimmie Ward and lost CB Chris Cook (hamstring) and C Daniel Kilgore (ankle/leg) to injuries.. ... Broncos LB Von Miller registered a pair of sacks to give him one in five consecutive games, the longest active streak in the league.