Julius Thomas delivers historic performance

Until Sunday night, Shannon Sharpe was the only Broncos tight end who had ever caught three touchdowns in a game. Julius Thomas added his name to that list in the second quarter of the 31-24 win over the Colts.

Thomas caught scoring passes of 3, 35 and 5 yards, beating a different Colts defender with relative ease each time. He finished with seven catches for 104 yards and now has five touchdown grabs in his last two season openers.

Thomas drew eight targets, third on the team. He continues to be a complete mismatch. Late in the first quarter, Thomas got behind the defense for a 34-yard gain down the sideline. Peyton Manning kept looking for him, especially in the red zone.

Thomas faces the Chiefs in Week 2.