The previous time Julius Thomas caught a slice of history, he tossed the ball aside before being told it would be a good idea to retrieve a record-setting touchdown ball from Peyton Manning.

Thomas made a mental note then, and when he caught Manning’s 500th career touchdown pass to close out the Denver Broncos’ opening drive Sunday, he held it close before handing the ball off to the team’s equipment staff.

“This time I remembered,” said Thomas, who also caught Manning’s record-setting 51st touchdown pass of the 2013 season. “This time, no way was I going to forget. I’m just fortunate to have been on the receiving end to the kind of plays people will remember about Peyton Manning.”

via Jeff Legwold of ESPN