(SportsNetwork.com) - Sunday night's matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos already figured to be must-watch TV given the success both clubs have had in recent seasons.
A chance at history for Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning only adds another level of intrigue, even if the former MVP isn't focusing on numbers.
Still, Manning moving past Brett Favre for the most touchdown passes thrown in NFL history figures to give Denver a good shot at beating the visiting 49ers this Sunday at Mile High.
The Broncos and Niners know a little something about having success in the NFL. Denver rolled all the way to the Super Bowl last season, though it was routed by the Seattle Seahawks, while the Niners have made it to three straight NFC Championship games with one Super Bowl appearance.
"They're a good football team. They're well coached, they've got good talent and they've assembled a very good roster," said Broncos head coach John Fox of the Niners. "That's why they've been able to win all those games and be in those championship games. So I think it'll be a very formidable foe and I think that's a good reason why we're playing on Sunday night."
Added Niners quarterback Jim Harbaugh of the Broncos, "We're going to have to be at our best. Great challenge. It's a prolific offense, but it's a very good football team defensively. Their special teams is exceptional across the board. This is a big game, big challenge, big task but we're excited to compete."
The biggest storyline going into this primetime game has to be Manning, who is three touchdown passes away from breaking Favre's all-time mark of 508.
Manning inched closer to the record by throwing three TD passes in a 31-17 win over the New York Jets last Sunday. That performance came at MetLife Stadium, the same place where the Broncos were routed by the Seahawks in the Super Bowl.
Despite being sacked twice and hurried countless other times in the first one- and-a-half quarters, Manning still ended 22-of-33 passing for 237 yards versus the Jets. He threw a pair of TD passes to tight end Julius Thomas, while wideout Demaryius Thomas had 10 catches for 124 yards and a score.
Ronnie Hillman, filling in for an injured Montee Ball, carried the ball 24 times for 100 yards, while Aqib Talib recorded a 22-yard pick-six with 15 seconds to play to seal the outcome and deny New York a chance at a game-tying score.
"The way the Jets played us, they didn't think too much of our run game. It was good to get it going," Manning said.
The Broncos improved to 4-1, winning two straight coming out of the bye. Denver had lost in Seattle in overtime in Week 3.
The Niners, meanwhile, have followed up early back-to-back losses with three straight wins. That includes a 31-17 victory over the St. Louis Rams last Monday night as the club overcame a two-touchdown deficit in the first quarter.
Colin Kaepernick passed for 343 yards and three touchdowns, hooking up with wide receiver Brandon Lloyd on an 80-yard score with less than 30 seconds to play until halftime that shifted the momentum.
"Big momentum boost for us," said Kaepernick. "We didn't take advantage of the opportunities early in the game. We did later in the game."
Anquan Boldin and Michael Crabtree also caught TD passes as Kaepernick improved to 4-0 in his career on "Monday Night Football."
On defense, the Niners registered five sacks.
San Francisco and Denver are meeting for the first time since a 24-16 victory by the 49ers on Oct. 31, 2010 in London, England. The Niners are visiting Denver for the first time since 2006 having won four of the last six regular- season meetings.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
In part because of promotion and also because of talent and significance, it will be impossible for Manning's chase of Favre's record not to be the main focus of this game.
Already joining Favre as the only two quarterbacks in NFL history to beat all 32 current teams, Manning is a sure-fire Hall of Famer and keeps defensive coordinators up all night as they try to figure out ways to shut him down.
"Big challenge. Huge task. A tremendous offense. Great quarterback. Capital 'G' at the highest level. And that competitive challenge is something that I think our team, our defense, will be up for," said Harbaugh.
Manning has thrown for 1,530 yards this season with 15 touchdown passes and three interceptions for a passer rating of 110.5. He has 3,032 passing yards, 27 TDs and a 111.4 rating in his last nine versus the NFC.
However, Manning remains focused on just getting the Broncos to a Super Bowl title and his main goal over the past few weeks hasn't been the record, but having Denver play in top form coming out of the off week.
"I think we've responded well coming off that bye week and have had two good wins playing excellent teams," he said. "So that's what I've concentrated on, trying to do whatever it takes to win and I don't feel like it's been a distraction because we've handled it and focused on what's important."
Julius Thomas, who leads the NFL with nine touchdown catches, agrees that the record hasn't taken over the gameplan.
"Probably the only time I talk about it is when you guys (the media) ask It's not something we talk about as an offense. Peyton doesn't talk about it, so we just keep playing football," declared the tight end.
Manning will take his shots against a San Francisco defense that ranks second in the league, giving up 287.2 yards per game. The Niners also rank second against the pass, yielding 207.3 YPG.
That despite linebackers Aldon Smith (suspension) and NaVorro Bowman (knee) having not played a down this season and San Francisco could be out a third world-class linebacker because of a toe injury suffered by Patrick Willis.
With Willis exiting Monday's game, linebackers Ahmad Brooks and Dan Skuta each had two sacks and safety Antoine Bethea added his first with the club.
Rookie Chris Borland is likely to be the one to step in for Willis at inside linebacker Sunday night next to Michael Wilhoite.
"What's been amazing to me is how well they've adjusted to injuries," Manning said of San Francisco's defense. "You lose some of these guys and they couldn't be doing this as well, they couldn't be stopping the run as well and you see it statistically and you see it on film. They've got guys stepping up, answering the bell, still playing their schemes. Stout against the run. That's probably been as impressive as anything."
Kaepernick gets the task of trying to outplay Manning and has won six of his last seven starts versus the AFC. When the mobile quarterback is on, he is tough to stop and the Niners are 15-1 including the playoffs when Kaepernick has a 100-plus passer rating.
Kaepernick has also controlled the ball well, passing for 1,456 yards and 10 touchdowns with four interceptions, but also has added 242 yards on the ground. He has taken off 46 times, averaging 5.3 yards per carry.
"I think Kaepernick has his unique style of playing. I'm not sure you could put other people in his category," said Manning. "I think he does some things I'm not sure anybody can do. The way he runs the ball -- he's not running to get first downs, he's running to score. He's tough to tackle."
Linebacker Von Miller will be one Bronco trying to bring him down. Miller had two sacks versus the Jets, giving him six in his last four games. A sack on Sunday night would give him the third five-game sack streak of his career.
However, Denver did lose linebacker Danny Trevathan again, placing him on injured reserve/designated to return on Tuesday just over a week after he returned to the field from a previous injury.
Trevathan fractured the upper portion of his left kneecap versus the Jets. The third-year pro had sat out Denver's first three games after fracturing part of the tibia in the same leg in August, but was back in action following the bye.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Manning will take center stage of Sunday night and that will also thrust Kaepernick into the lights as well.
"I think we're two people trying to lead our team to victories. At the end of the day, that's what we do," said Kaepernick.
That is something that Manning has been doing for many, many years now and it would be tough to believe that the record isn't on his mind. That could be a good thing, though, as touchdowns can win games and getting the record out of the way early could be a blessing.
San Francisco's defense has played better than expected given the injuries it had to deal with before the season even started, but the loss of Willis could be the one that breaks the camel's back.
Even with Manning under center, the Broncos aren't afraid to run the ball at times to keep teams honest and San Francisco's stretched defense will likely struggle containing all of Denver's offensive weapons.
Sports Network predicted outcome: Broncos 28, 49ers 20
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