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Peyton Manning hands off to running back Knowshon Moreno. Ben Margot/AP/Press Association Images
American Football

NFL: Broncos set up Baltimore decider

Peyton Manning threw his 30th TD of the season as the Denver Broncos beat Oakland 26-13 last night.

GOING ON THE in a short week is a tough task for any NFL team.

Now the Denver Broncos get the reward for beating the Oakland Raiders — three extra days of rest before their most important game remaining in the regular season.

Peyton Manning threw for 310 yards and had his 30th touchdown pass of the season on the game’s opening drive to help the Broncos roll to their eighth straight victory, 26-13 over the Raiders last night.

“These Thursday night games are tough, especially late in the year,” Manning said. “I know I’m tired.”

Knowshon Moreno ran for 119 yards and a score on a career-high 32 carries, and Matt Prater kicked four field goals to help the Broncos (10-3) move a half-game ahead of New England and Baltimore for the second-best record in the AFC.

Denver now gets the extra rest before visiting the Ravens next week in a game that will help decide who gets a first-round playoff bye.

“It means a lot,” cornerback Champ Bailey said. “We’re probably going to need it. The more preparation you could have for a team like that, the better.”

Carson Palmer threw one interception that thwarted a possible scoring chance for the Raiders (3-10) and lost a fumble that set up a touchdown for the Broncos as Oakland lost its sixth straight game. It is the team’s longest skid since also losing six in a row in 2007.

The Raiders played the game with heavy hearts as coach Dennis Allen’s father, Grady, died earlier in the week from cardiac arrest. Allen was away from the team for two days but returned Wednesday and coached the game.

“I took my father off life support and that’s not easy to do,” Allen said, his voice cracking. “So was it hard? Yeah, it was hard. But I know my father would want me to be here with this football team, and I wanted to be here with this football team. So I’m sure you guys can imagine it wasn’t an easy situation.”

After the game police said a man fell from the upper deck at the stadium shortly before kickoff and was in serious condition at a hospital. Initial reports called the fall an accident, but police said it remained under investigation. The team had no comment.

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Associated Foreign Press