Four days from now marks twelve years since Peyton Manning became the NFL’s career leader in touchdown passes. On Sunday night, October 19, 2014, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Manning hit Demaryius Thomas for an 8-yard score late in the second quarter. It was touchdown pass No. 509. Brett Favre’s record of 508 was gone.
The Broncos beat the San Francisco 49ers 42-17 in front of 77,047. Manning finished 22-of-26 for 318 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions and a 157.2 passer rating. He did all of it in three quarters, then watched the fourth from the sideline. He reached No. 509 in his 246th regular-season game. Favre had needed 302.
The countdown: 507, 508, 509, 510
Manning walked in with 506 career touchdown passes, two short of tying Favre and three short of passing him. The crowd brought signs for the number before kickoff. It did not have to wait long.
| No. | Quarter / clock | Play | Score after |
|---|---|---|---|
| 507 | 1st, 8:29 | 3-yard pass to Emmanuel Sanders (opening drive) | DEN 7, SF 0 |
| 508 | 1st, 2:57 | 39-yard pass to Wes Welker (confirmed by replay) — ties Favre | DEN 14, SF 0 |
| 509 | 2nd, 3:09 | 8-yard pass to Demaryius Thomas — new record | DEN 21, SF 3 |
| 510 | 3rd, 11:48 | 40-yard pass to Demaryius Thomas after an Aqib Talib interception | DEN 28, SF 10 |
The Sanders catch on the first drive was his first touchdown as a Bronco. Welker’s 39-yarder over the middle needed a replay review before it counted, and it pulled Manning even with Favre before the first quarter ended. Phil Dawson’s 22-yard field goal got San Francisco on the board in the second quarter. Then came the record: Thomas, working against cornerback Tramaine Brock, caught Manning’s slightly wobbling throw and dragged his right foot in the grass for six.
Keep-away
What happened next is the part people still replay. Manning jogged over to collect the record ball. Thomas tossed it over him to Sanders. Sanders flipped it to Welker, Welker sent it back to Sanders, and Sanders handed it off to tight end Julius Thomas before Manning finally got his souvenir.
It looked improvised. It was not. Demaryius Thomas said after the game that Manning himself had suggested a game of keep-away if anyone caught No. 509, and the receivers had walked through it at Friday’s practice. “Those guys are all great athletes and my vertical leap isn’t what it used to be,” Manning said. “I haven’t played keep-away since I was 8 years old. That is something I will always remember.”
Favre, the man he passed, offered his congratulations that night: “I’m not surprised. You’ve been a wonderful player and I’ve enjoyed watching you play. I’ve enjoyed competing against you.”
The rest of the night
Colin Kaepernick’s 4-yard pass to Stevie Johnson with 11 seconds left in the half made it 21-10. San Francisco never got closer. Talib’s third-quarter interception set up the 40-yard strike to Thomas for No. 510, and Ronnie Hillman ran for touchdowns of 37 yards and 1 yard to make it 42-10. Brock Osweiler played the fourth quarter. Blaine Gabbert’s 20-yard pass to Bruce Ellington with a minute left closed the scoring.
| Broncos | 49ers | |
|---|---|---|
| Final score | 42 | 17 |
| Total yards | 419 | 310 |
| Yards per play | 7.5 | 4.4 |
| Passing yards (net) | 304 | 248 |
| Rushing yards | 115 (27 att.) | 62 (18 att.) |
| First downs | 23 | 22 |
| Third down | 5-of-9 | 3-of-13 |
| Sacks allowed | 2 | 6 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
| Possession | 27:59 | 32:01 |
| Record after | 5-1 | 4-3 |
Demaryius Thomas finished with eight catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns, Nos. 509 and 510. Hillman ran 14 times for 74 yards. Denver’s defense sacked Kaepernick six times. There was one more layer of history: in March 2012, after his release in Indianapolis, Manning had worked out for the 49ers before choosing Denver. The team he passed Favre against was one of the teams he nearly joined.
Where 509 sits now
Manning threw 39 touchdown passes in 2014 as Denver went 12-4 and won the AFC West, then lost a divisional-round game to the Colts. One season later he won Super Bowl 50 and retired with 539 regular-season touchdown passes. Drew Brees passed that total on December 16, 2019, with a 5-yard throw to Josh Hill against the Colts, and Tom Brady finished his career at 649.
The record moved on. The night did not lose its shape: a 38-year-old quarterback, three years after neck surgeries cost him a full season, taking down one of the sport’s signature numbers in barely a half, and getting pranked by his own receivers in a play he had scripted himself.
Watch: No. 509 and the keep-away
The first clip is the league’s own cut of the record throw to Thomas and the celebration. The second is Manning wired for sound through the night he passed Favre.
More October history on WhyNFL: October 17, 1994: Montana and Elway’s last duel at Mile High, October 27, 2002: Emmitt passes Payton and October 18, 2009: Brady’s five-touchdown quarter. Team pages: Broncos and 49ers. For this season’s San Francisco offense, see the 49ers’ 5-0 start by the numbers.
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