Lions have to deal with hot Manning

DETROIT — Peyton Manning is thankful he doesn’t play in a sport with 162 regular-season games.

He is on pace to break Dan Marino’s record of 48 touchdowns in a season, and he’s getting tired of talking about it.

“I can’t imagine those baseball players, if anyone goes out on a hitting streak, trying to go after (Joe) DiMaggio’s streak or anyone flirting with hitting .400 like Ted Williams,” Manning said. “Or (Mark) McGwire or (Barry) Bonds in the home run chase.

“That’s a lot of games those guys have to deal with those questions.”

Through 10 games, he leads the NFL with 35 TDs, two more than his previous career best, 2,960 yards passing and a passer rating of 122.2.

Manning will not threaten Marino’s record when the Colts (7-3) play at Detroit (4-6) on Thanksgiving, but he can take another step toward the milestone the former Miami Dolphins star set in 1984.

“People are starting to ask about it on a weekly basis,” he said. “I know it’s a boring answer, but I just want to keep winning games.”

Manning has thrown at least four TDs in four straight games, tying another Marino mark.

Colts coach Tony Dungy said if his quarterback was focused on the record, he could’ve thrown for even more scores this season.

“We go to the line of scrimmage all the time with a run-pass option. He can call a pass on every play,” Dungy said.

In a game earlier this season, Dungy said Manning called three or four straight runs when he probably could’ve tossed yet another TD, but wanted to get Edgerrin James in the end zone.

Detroit cornerback Fernando Bryant knows what he and the rest of his teammates on defense are in for when they try to slow down Manning.

“I played him in college and I’ve played in the pros,” said Bryant, a former Jacksonville Jaguars and Alabama standout.

“Over the last 10 years, he’s the most complete player in this league.”