INDIANAPOLIS - Robert Mathis still remembers the first time he wandered into the Colts no-hit zone. Cheap New York Knicks Jerseys . As the fifth-round draft pick went through a routine practice in 2003, he wound up getting a little too close to Peyton Manning on a pass rush. No, he didnt hit the franchise quarterback, but Indy coaches immediately scolded the rookie and reminded him of the potentially dire consequences if he made the same mistake again. "If you come within two yards of him, you might get cut," Mathis said with a smile this week. "Thats just the truth." Mathis wised up fast, which is why he is still hanging around Indianapolis (4-2) and wreaking havoc in opposing backfields. Since making that blunder, Mathis has seen and done just about everything in 11 NFL seasons. Hes won a Super Bowl, two AFC titles, been to five consecutive Pro Bowls, topped 100 career sacks and is now chasing the Colts franchise record for sacks, held by his old pal Dwight Freeney. At age 32, he shares the NFL lead with 9 1/2 sacks, and he has proven to be every bit as effective as a standup linebacker as he was playing defensive end. This weekend, Mathis will finally get a chance to add one missing line to his resume — sacking Manning. Though 14 players on Indys roster remain from the Manning era, only five went up against him in practice — linebackers Pat Angerer and Kavell Conner, safety Antoine Bethea, defensive linemen Ricardo Matthews, Fili Moala and Mathis. But through the years, the protective blanket around Manning always existed. "If you did hit him, you might as well pack your bags and leave town," Angerer said. On Sunday night, when Manning returns to Indianapolis for the first time as the opponent, the Colts defence can finally line him up. Mathis and others have made it clear all week that they are not making this game personal. But when the Broncos (6-0) and Colts (4-2) meet in the NFLs most anticipated homecoming since Brett Favre showed up in Green Bay with the Vikings, Mathis plans to get down to the business of putting Manning on the ground. It wont be easy, and with Manning it never is. In 230 career games, Manning has been sacked just 257 times, an average of 17.9 per season. This year, Manning leads the league with 22 TD passes, a 128.8 passer rating, an offence that is on pace to shatter the NFLs single-season scoring record. Hes been sacked just five times despite playing behind an offensive line that includes a backup left tackle, a first-year centre and a right tackle who finished last weeks 35-19 victory at right guard. The biggest challenge this week might be avoiding Mathis. "If this was a scenario where all I had to do maybe was come back and wave and smile and kiss a few babies and sign a few autographs, itd be different," Manning said. "But somehow Ive got to figure out a way to stay away from Mathis and try to complete a few passes on (Vontae) Davis and Bethea and thats going to be tough because I think its a tough defence." Indys defence looks nothing like the one Manning left behind. The Colts have ditched their trademark 4-3 look for the trendy hybrid 3-4, cut ties with defensive captain Gary Brackett and let Freeney walk away in free agency. Over the past two seasons, Indy has added five new starters in the front seven, moved Mathis and replaced three of the four starters in the secondary. Manning has spent most of the week working overtime to get familiar with all the new faces and philosophies. But the ex-teammates know what to expect from their former quarterback. "Its going to be a chess match, of course. He looks for his mismatches just like any other quarterback does," Bethea said. "Its going to be tough. He might get us a few times, we might get him a few times, but for the most part, like I continue to say, we got to go out there and play ball. When we get chances to make plays, we got to make our plays." Especially Mathis, who has the ability to change games with big, turnover-causing sacks. Manning has seen it before, hes just never been the target since that practice in 2003. Until now. "Somebody asked me earlier, is it the same as playing against Eli, and I said I guarantee Robert Mathis hits a heck of a lot harder than Eli does," Manning said. "From that standpoint, its definitely different. All I know is kind of what I have to do right now is great ready for a good defence. Boy, theyre impressive to watch on film. Mathis, Robert is having a great year. Its really a factor." Jerseys NFL China . Fantuz announced via Twitter on Wednesday morning that he would attend the CFL teams practice, effectively putting his NFL aspirations on hold. . Now theyre playing sky high. Boston won its fifth straight series with a 10-4 win Wednesday over the Toronto Blue Jays with six runs in the first inning against a wild Ricky Romero and with the help of David Ortizs 399th career homer. [url=http://www.wholesalenfljerseyfreeshipping.net/]http://www.wholesalenfljerse... . Hudson allowed one run in six-plus innings, Stephen Drew had three hits and two RBIs, and Arizona beat the struggling Florida Marlins 5-1. [url=http://www.goodcheapjerseys.com/]wholesale jerseys . -- Dmitry Kulikov had a rough start and a smooth finish in his first game back for the Florida Panthers. Adidas Sneakers Dames .J. -- John Idzik acknowledged that he and Darrelle Revis recently had "a nice talk.SPARTA, Ky. -- Carl Edwards kept hearing the same question over and over every time the NASCAR star would step out of his hauler before a Nationwide Series race at Kentucky Speedway. "They always ask when are the Cup cars coming? When are we getting a Cup race?" Edwards said. Edwards, who admittedly doesnt get too involved with the politics of which tracks get a Cup race and which ones dont, never really came up with a good answer. Now he doesnt have to. NASCARs top series will make its long-awaited debut at the 1.5-mile oval tucked in the northern Kentucky hills on Saturday night, a visit that has given the dog days of the NASCAR schedule a much-needed jolt. Though the Nationwide and Truck Series have been coming to the track annually almost from the moment it opened in 2000 and Cup teams have logged thousands of hours of test laps here before the series cut down on testing to help teams save money, Edwards acknowledges things are a little different this time. "Right now it feels like its kind of a novelty event," said Edwards, who won his first NASCAR event when he captured the truck race here in 2003. "Theres a bit of buzz in the air." A sensation a long-time coming for a state with deep ties to stock car racings roots. This isnt actually the first time NASCARs top series has come to the Bluegrass. Corbin Speedway in southeastern Kentucky hosted a Cup race in 1954, an event won by Hall of Famer Lee Petty. The Waltrip family, headed by Darrell and Michael Waltrip, is from Owensboro in western Kentucky and Michael will honour his brother with a paint scheme honouring Darrells first NASCAR win at Nashville in 1975. That history is one of the reasons Jerry Carroll was so eager to build a high-performance track in the state. The head of the ownership group that opened the track in 2000 was certain he could build a facility good enough to land a Cup date and the tens of millions of dollars in economic impact that come with it. Building the track turned out to be the easy part, move a few hundred million cubic yards of dirt and advertise stock car racing to one of the most devout NASCAR fan bases located outside of the deep South and things tend to work out. Kevin Harvick thought the speedway was Cup ready a decade ago when he won the inaugural Nationwide race in 2001. He saw the packed grandstand -- Kentucky has consistently led the one-off tracks in Nationwide attendance -- and the technical prowess needed to successfully manoeuvre through the bumpy circuit and felt the Cup could thrive here. Yet Harvick knows enough to know it takes more than nice digs, a ton of fans and a quirky track to get on the Cup schedule. "When you do have a new facility I think everybody wants to see if it is able to keep bringing the fans in and keep the longevity of that particular facility might be proven to get to this level of a racce," Harvick said. cheap nfl jerseys China. "Its great to see here. I know it took 10 years but its good." Even if it took 10 years too long for Carroll. When NASCAR kept brushing aside his attempts to get a Cup date, Carroll and the rest of the ownership group took NASCAR and International Speedway Corp., to court, claiming the two held an unfair monopoly on stock car racing. The courts consistently sided with NASCAR during the lengthy four-year legal battle as the ownership continued to pursue the fight even after selling the track to Speedway Motorsports Inc. in 2008. SMI chairman Bruton Smith promised the day he took over he would do what Carroll couldnt and get a Cup race. The state pledged millions of dollars in tax incentives if he could get it done, and last August he delivered when he moved a Cup date from SMI-owned Atlanta Motor Speedway to Kentucky. The last 11 months trying to get through Smiths lengthy to-do list. Two days out, the finishing touches are still being worked on, though the majority of the overhaul has been completed head of schedule. Pit road has been moved closer to the grandstands, where more than 40,000 seats have been added. The camping area has been expanded to accommodate 4,000 vehicles and officials claim to have sold tickets to fans from all 50 states. Yes, even Alaska. A late ticket push has led to a sellout, making the race the second-biggest event in the state behind the Kentucky Derby. It will also make for some headaches. Tony Stewart complained Thursday the track could use more SAFER barriers, a notion vice-president of competition Robin Pemberton would be evaluated after the weekend. The cars, however, went through a pair of lengthy test sessions during the afternoon without an incident and several drivers believe the layout will provide for multiple-line racing, something that can be hard to come by on the 1.5-mile ovals. "Its not just one groove sitting on the white line, single-file racing," Edwards said. "Its a track where you can chase down a guy and pressure him." Carroll, who has remained on as an adviser, is convinced the drivers will put on a good show. He knows they better because of the traffic that awaits shortly after the celebration in Victory Lane on Saturday night. Interstate 71 serves as the only major road in and out of the somewhat remote area located about halfway between Louisville and Cincinnati. Though the state has invested millions of dollars in road improvements in the immediate area, the interstate is still in the midst of several construction projects that could make the ride home a lengthy one. After waiting so long to get a Cup race, Carroll thinks a slow ride home is a small price to pay. "When its over, we hope the experience has been so great that theyre going to accept the time it takes to get out," he said with a laugh. ' ' '