INDIANAPOLIS: Peyton Manning threw three touch down passes in the first 23 minutes, then was picked off three times before the Indianapolis Colts earned their 22nd consecutive regular-season win with a 28-16 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
While the Colts (13-0) won their 114th game of the decade, breaking a tie with the 1990s San Francisco 49ers, and took a franchise record 13th consecutive home game, Denver receiver Brandon Marshall broke the league’s single-game record with 21 receptions.
Marshall tied the mark on a 5-yard TD catch with 9:44 left in the game to make it 21-16 and broke the record on the Broncos’ final play.
Saints 26, Falcons 23: At Atlanta, Drew Brees was 31 for 40 and threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, and Jonathan Vilma came up with two huge defensive plays as New Orleans remained unbeaten with another tight win.
Garrett Hartley won it on a 38-yard field goal with a 4:42 remaining after Atlanta rallied from 14 points down. The offensive-minded Saints (13-0) then turned to defense to preserve another victory — Vilma came up with an interception, then doled out a big fourth-down hit on Jason Snelling to finish the Falcons’ final drive.
Eagles 45, Giants 38: At East Rutherford, New Jersey, DeSean Jackson scored on a 72-yard punt return and a 60-yard pass from Donovan McNabb, sparking the Eagles to their most points this season.
The second-year wide receiver missed last week with a concussion, but was in sensational form in boosting Philadelphia (9-4) into the NFC East lead. Jackson has eight touchdowns of 50-plus yards this year, tying the NFL mark.
Vikings 30, Bengals 10: At Minneapolis, Adrian Peterson had 97 yards and two touchdowns, pushing Minnesota past mistake-prone Cincinnati. Peterson added 40 yards receiving and set a single-season team record with 14 rushing touchdowns, moving Minnesota (11-2) within one more win of a second straight NFC North title.
Brett Favre completed 17 of 30 passes for 192 yards, one touchdown and an interception for the Vikings.
Texans 34, Seahawks 7: At Houston, Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson put together their best game of the season to help Houston snap out of a slump and keep its dwindling playoff hopes alive.
Johnson had a season-high 193 yards receiving and two touchdowns to lead the Texans (6-7) over Seattle (5-8), breaking a four-game losing streak.
Packers 21, Bears 14: At Chicago, Ryan Grant ran for 137 yards and two touchdowns, and Green Bay beat Chicago after letting a lead slip away.
Grant broke off a season-long 62-yard touchdown on the Packers’ first play from scrimmage and scored the go-ahead TD in the fourth quarter after Nick Collins intercepted Jay Cutler.
Ravens 48, Lions 3: At Baltimore, Ray Rice ran for a career-high 166 yards and a touchdown as Baltimore enhanced its playoff hopes with a rout of Detroit.
Baltimore (7-6) built a 20-3 halftime lead behind the play of Rice, who had 155 yards rushing on only nine carries, and four catches for 53 yards. His 59-yard touchdown run made it 17-3, and the Ravens cruised to the finish in handing the hapless Lions (2-11) their 19th straight road loss.
Patriots 20, Panthers 10: At Foxborough, Massachusetts, New England shook off a poor first half, went ahead with 1:06 left in the third quarter on Tom Brady’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin Watson and beat Carolina.
The Patriots (8-5) snapped a two-game losing streak and maintained their one-game lead in the AFC East. The Panthers (5-8) lost for the third time in four games.
Bills 16, Chiefs 10: At Kansas City, Missouri, Rian Lindell kicked three field goals, and Buffalo intercepted Matt Cassel four times to beat struggling Kansas City.
Buffalo (5-8) overcame three turnovers and an ineffective passing game to finally close out a win in the fourth quarter. The Bills had lost seven times this season when they were within a touchdown headed into the final 15 minutes, pulling this one out with two interceptions in the final 2:11.
Jets 26, Buccaneers 3: At Tampa, Florida, Thomas Jones ran for 99 yards and two touchdowns, and Jay Feely kicked four field goals as the New York Jets intercepted rookie Josh Freeman three times while holding sputtering Tampa Bay to 135 yards.
Filling in for injured rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, Kellen Clemens completed 12 of 23 passes for just 111 yards. Receiver Brad Smith had the Jets’ longest completion of the day — 27 yards — when he threw to Eric Smith on a fake punt play.
Dolphins 14, Jaguars 10: At Jacksonville, Florida, Chad Henne completed a team-record 17 consecutive passes and Ricky Williams ran for 108 yards and a score as Miami beat Jacksonville.
The loss snapped Jacksonville’s five-game winning streak at home, and now the Jaguars (7-6) no longer control their wild-card hopes.
Chargers 20, Cowboys 17: At Arlington, Texas, Phillip Rivers hit Antonio Gates for a go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter to lift San Diego over Dallas.
Titans 47, Rams 7: At Nashville, Tennessee, Chris Johnson ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns and took a short pass 66 yards for another score to lead Tennessee to a rout of woeful St.Louis.
Redskins 34, Raiders 13: At Oakland, California, Jason Campbell threw two touchdown passes to give Washington the lead, and Quinton Ganther put it away by running for two fourth-quarter scores.
