Chargers vs. Broncos: 3 things you need to know
First place in the AFC West is on the line Thursday night when the San Diego Chargers visit the Denver Broncos.
Here's what you need to know:
Chargers play Manning tough
It's just about impossible to stop Peyton Manning and the Broncos offense, but the Chargers proved they were at least able to slow them down last season.
The teams faced off three times in 2013, and the Chargers limited Manning to less than 300 yards passing in two of those contests. They also defeated the Broncos in Denver in a pivotal December matchup, and nearly pulled off an upset in the playoffs.
With the way Manning carved up the San Francisco 49ers' secondary last Sunday en route to the all-time touchdown record, it's going to take a monumental effort from the Chargers to come away with a win.
San Diego hurting at corner
If you do plan on slowing down arguably the greatest quarterback in history, it would probably help to have your corners at full strength.
The Chargers don't have that luxury at the moment, with Brandon Flowers ruled out and first-round pick Jason Verrett banged up. Flowers is dealing with a concussion and Verrett has a shoulder injury.
It remains to be seen if Verrett will play, and at what capacity, so Manning has to be chomping at the bit to air it out. The Broncos have multiple receiving threats and it'll be a long night for the Chargers if they are down their top two corners.
Battle of backup running backs
Both the Broncos and Chargers have been hit with injuries at running back, but each squad has been able to weather the storm.
San Diego is down to its fourth option on the depth chart, Branden Oliver, who has exceeded everyone's expectations. Oliver has run for more than 100 yards and a touchdown in two of the last three games. He'll need to maintain that pace if the Chargers hope to keep Manning off the field.
Denver turned to Ronnie Hillman after Montee Ball went down with a groin injury. Hillman had some fumbling issues last season and was made inactive for a large stretch of the campaign. That seems to be behind him in 2014, though, as Hillman has totaled 174 yards and two touchdowns over the last two weeks.