Take Peyton Manning and the Broncos

CHARGERS (5-2) at BRONCOS (5-1), 8:25 p.m.

LINE: Broncos by 7 1/2; O/U: 51

TV: Ch. 2/NFL Radio: WFAN (660, 101.9)

After five straight duds, the last two Thursday night games have been, well, watchable.

Last week's Jets-Patriots game came down to the game's final play. (Although it didn't end well for Gang Green fans, it did end well for those who backed the Jets!)

The Chargers have one of the best records against the spread (ATS) in the AFC this season (5-2), and have covered five straight games as underdogs of eight or fewer points.

San Diego is 7-0-4 ATS in its last 11 meetings in Denver, and 11-4-2 ATS in its last 17 meetings with the Broncos overall. Incidentally, the road team is 13-4-4 ATS in the last 21 series games, and 'dogs have covered five of the last six contests.

But I'll fade all those trends because of two simple words: Peyton Manning.

The NFL's all-time leader in passing touchdowns (510) has the Broncos clicking on all cylinders.

Denver is ranked fourth overall in offense at 394 yards per game (ypg), and is third in passing (298.8 ypg). They're ranked eighth in both third-down offense (44 percent) and defense (37 percent).

Also, Manning is leading the NFL in passer rating (118.2), is tied (with Indy's Andrew Luck) for first in passing touchdowns (19), and is second in completion percentage among starting quarterbacks (.687). Overall, Manning is 149 of 217 passing for 1,848 yards with only three interceptions. He's been sacked seven times.

The public money has been pouring in on Denver lately, and it's no wonder. It's hard to fade a team that has outscored its last three opponents by an average score of 38-18. Orange Crush, indeed!

The pick: Broncos