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KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- Visions of
Peyton Manning
are still haunting the
Kansas City Chiefs
.
Manning threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns to lead the
Indianapolis Colts
to a 38-31 victory over the Chiefs here in the divisional playoffs last January.
The NFL's reigning co-Most Valuable Player made it look easy against the Chiefs, leading the Colts to touchdowns on their first three possessions of the first half and a field goal and two more touchdowns on their first three possessions of the second half.
"I remember that (offensive coordinator) Tom Moore called a great game," Manning said. "It seemed that every play we had called was the perfect play for that situation."
Manning completed 9-of-13 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns in the first half and 13-of-17 for 161 yards and a score in the second half.
Edgerrin James
balanced Manning's aerial show with 125 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries and
Marvin Harrison
caught six passes for 98 yards.
In all, the Colts had 434 yards and 27 first downs and Kansas City totaled 408 yards and 24 first downs.
Trent Green
threw for 212 yards for the Chiefs.
Kansas City had a touchdown, field goal and missed field goal on three first-half possessions and a turnover and three touchdowns, including a 92-yard kick return by
Dante Hall
, in the second half.
"What we have to do Sunday is keep Manning on the bench," Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said. "The way to do that is to have sustained drives. We need to run the ball."
Vermeil would love to see a repeat of what happened last week when his offensive line staged a devastating performance in a 56-10 rout of the
Atlanta Falcons
, who had been the league's top-ranked run defense.
Center
Casey Wiegmann
, guards
Brian Waters
and
Will Shields
and tackles
Willie Roaf
and
John Welbourn
cleared the way for an NFL-record eight rushing touchdowns and 271 yards on the ground.
"That was great because it's a record that sets this offensive line apart from any other offensive line in history," said
Priest Holmes
, who rushed for all four of his scores in the first half and gained 139 yards on 22 carries.
Backup
Derrick Blaylock
rushed for the other four touchdowns.
The 6-3, 318-pound Waters was even honored as the AFC's Offensive Player of the Week, marking the first time that an offensive lineman has received the AFC award.
The only three offensive linemen to win the award in the NFC were tackles
Erik Williams
of Dallas (1992), Jim Lachey of Washington (1990) and Brad Benson of the
New York Giants
(1986).
Last week, the Colts totaled 446 yards, but yielded 414 and committed two turnovers in a 27-24 loss to the
Jacksonville Jaguars
, snapping a four-game winning streak. Manning threw for 368 yards and three touchdowns.
Slot receiver
Brandon Stokley
had seven catches for 112 yards and Harrison caught five passes for 70 yards and two touchdowns.
Cornerbacks
Eric Warfield
and
Dexter McCleon
and safeties
Greg Wesley
and
Jerome Woods
will need to fare better against Harrison,
Reggie Wayne
, Stokley and tight end Dallas Clark Sunday if the Chiefs hope to fare better than they did in the playoffs last year.
A classic battle in the trenches will feature Roaf against Colts right end
Dwight Freeney
.
Matchup to watch: Harrison matches up against McCleon.
Series: Indianapolis leads, 10-6, and has won the last seven meetings. Manning is 4-0 against the Chiefs.
Next week: Indianapolis hosts Minnesota on November 8. Kansas City visits Tampa Bay on November 7.
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