QB fires 500th TD pass as Denver tops Arizona
DENVER — Peyton Manning joined Brett Favre in one of the NFL’s most exclusive clubs with his 500th career touchdown pass Sunday as the Denver Broncos handed the Arizona Cardinals their first loss, 41-20.
Manning finished with four TD throws, moving him five behind Favre’s record of 508.
“Football is the ultimate team game, and so I guess one man has to accept it and I really accept it on behalf of a lot of coaches and teammates,” Manning said.
Manning found tight end Julius Thomas twice in the end zone, including the touchstone touchdown, a 7-yard dart in the first quarter.
Yet, it was wide receiver Demaryius Thomas who had the biggest day for the Broncos (3-1), with eight catches for a team-record 226 yards and two TDs. That beat Shannon Sharpe’s mark of 214 yards set against Kansas City in 2002.
Demaryius Thomas caught touchdown passes of 31 and 86 yards — and a 77-yard TD was nullified by left tackle Ryan Clady’s chop block in the third quarter.
Manning finished 31-for-47 for 479 yards and four TDs with two interceptions. Emmanuel Sanders caught seven passes for 101 yards.
Arizona (3-1), in addition to losing the game, had quarterback Drew Stanton leave with a possible concussion.
Stanton, subbing for Carson Palmer, was knocked from the game on a hard hit by Von Miller in the third quarter. Stanton was 11-for-26 for 118 yards before being replaced by Logan Thomas.
After getting sacked twice on his first drive and throwing two incompletions on his second, Thomas threaded a pass through linebacker Nate Irving’s grasp into the arms of running back Andre Ellington for a stunning 81-yard score that made it 24-20 late in the third quarter.
Brandon McManus, whose solid start convinced the Broncos that they should release suspended Matt Prater, made it 27-20 when his 41-yard field goal caromed off the left post and over the crossbar.