Broncos Hand Raiders 15th Straight Loss In Oakland
OAKLAND (CBS/AP) -- Peyton Manning shook off a rare shaky start with his usual spectacular play.
Manning threw five touchdown passes in less than 17 minutes and the Denver Broncos handed the Oakland Raiders their 15th straight loss, 41-17 on Sunday.
Manning threw a pair of early interceptions that put Denver (7-2) in a hole against the NFL's only winless team. That all changed with a short pass that C.J. Anderson turned into a spectacular 51-yard catch and run. The touchdowns didn't stop until Manning's day was done after three quarters.
Manning added two TD passes to Julius Thomas and two more to Emmanuel Sanders as the Broncos rebounded from last week's loss at New England by beating up on the Raiders (0-9).
Manning went 31 for 44 for 340 yards. He extended his record with at least two touchdown passes in 15 straight games and his streak of 48 games with at least one TD pass is third longest, breaking a tie with Johnny Unitas.
Anderson, who grew up in nearby Vallejo and attended college at California, finished with 90 yards rushing and 73 receiving. Demaryius Thomas had 11 catches for 108 yards.
There was almost nothing positive from the Raiders in their first blowout loss since interim coach Tony Sparano replaced the fired Dennis Allen after four games.
Derek Carr threw for 192 yards on 47 attempts, most of the production coming on a meaningless touchdown drive in the closing minutes. He also had two interceptions. The running game was limited to 30 yards on 15 carries and the defense was completely overmatched after a spirited start.
The game—and season—could be summed up in one play for Oakland early in the third quarter. Carr was under pressure when he dumped off a pass to guard Khalif Barnes. Barnes looked shocked when he caught the ball, but ran with it despite an ineligible receiver. Malik Jackson knocked the ball loose and Chris Harris Jr. recovered at the 18.
That set up a 10-yard touchdown pass to Julius Thomas that put the Broncos up 28-10 and in control.
Manning struggled early, throwing an interception on the second play from scrimmage to DJ Hayden. That set up a 41-yard field goal by Sebastian Janikowski that gave the Raiders their first lead against the Broncos since Tim Tebow was the Denver quarterback in 2011.
The Broncos then got field goals on a pair of drives inside the Oakland 20 as Manning struggled to get into rhythm. The problems for Manning got worse when defensive end Justin Tuck made an athletic interception, jumping to tip a pass and then catching it himself to give Oakland the ball at the 12.
Carr capitalized with a 5-yard pass to Brice Butler that put the Raiders up 10-6.
Oakland then had the ball in position to add to the lead late in the first half. But Carr was intercepted by Bradley Roby on a poor pass over the middle, and the game quickly changed.
On third-and-8, Manning threw a short pass to Anderson, who immediately broke a tackle from Miles Burris. He then ran threw three more tackle attempts as he weaved his way around the defense for a 51-yard TD.
After a three-and-out by Oakland, Manning added a 32-yard touchdown pass to Sanders that put Denver up 20-10 at the half.
