“All of a sudden, I see Marvin sprinting for the end zone,” Manning said. “When something like that happens, it tells you maybe it’s going to be your day.”
Indeed it was.
The NFL’s co-MVP passed the Indianapolis Colts to a 41-10 victory over Denver on Sunday that put to rest any questions about Manning’s ability to win a big game.
“Every ball he threw was perfect,” said Brandon Stokley, who caught two of Manning’s five touchdown passes.
No kidding. And when things weren’t perfect, the Broncos were helping the Colts out.
That was most apparent late in the first quarter when Harrison caught a pass at the Broncos 30, lay on the turf untouched as two Denver players argued over who missed the assignment. He got up and ran to the end zone to give Indianapolis a 14-3 lead, and help send the Colts to Kansas City for a second-round game next Sunday.
Manning threw for touchdowns on each of the Colts’ first four possessions and finished 22-of-26 for 377 yards and five TDs, the third time in 17 games this season he had five or more TD tosses. That made Manning the first ever to do that. His four TD passes in the first half tied a playoff record held by 10 others, most recently Kerry Collins of the Giants in the NFC title game three years ago.
When he left game in the fourth quarter he had a perfect passer rating of 158.3 for the second time this season, the fourth perfect playoff game in NFL history.
