NEW YORK, 27 November 2004 — Peyton Manning threw six touchdown passes, setting an NFL record with his fifth straight game with at least four TD tosses, as the Indianapolis Colts hammered the Lions 41-9 in Thanksgiving Day play in Detroit.
Miami’s Dan Marino had the previous record, a four-game streak in 1984 when he also set a league mark with 48 TD passes in a season. Manning already has 41 TD passes this season.
Manning tossed four TD passes in the first half alone on Thursday and his six strikes tied his personal best in one game as the Colts rolled to a 27-9 halftime lead and were never threatened by the Lions.
Brandon Stockey and Marvin Harrison both caught three TD passes for the Colts (8-3), with Stockey getting all three of his in the first half.
Manning went 23-for-28 for 237 yards, with Harrison catching 12 passes for 127 yards and Stockey five for 57 yards.
Edgerrin James rushed for 106 yards on 23 carries for the Colts as he added to his AFC-leading rushing totals as well.
Indianapolis led the Lions (4-7) 13-6 after the first quarter on a pair of TD catches by Stockey and added two touchdowns in the second quarter. Harrison caught two more TD passes from Manning in the third quarter to complete the rout.
Kevin Jones rushed for 100 yards for the Lions on 12 carries, but the Lions could not generate nearly enough offense to keep pace with Manning’s assault.
Jason Hanson kicked three field goals to account for all of Detroit’s scoring.
In the other game played on Thursday, Julius Jones scored a pair of touchdowns as the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Chicago Bears 21-7 in Irving, Texas.
Jones wound up with 150 yards rushing on 33 carries and was the first Cowboy to rush for 100 yards or more this season as Dallas (4-7) ended a three-game losing streak.
Vinny Testaverde came on in relief of starter Drew Henson and led the Cowboys to two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter to break a 7-7 tie. He finished 9-for-14 for 92 yards.
The Bears managed just 154 net yards of offense and their lone touchdown was scored by R.W. McQuarters on a 54-yard interception return in the second quarter.
