DeSean Jackson come down with a 36-yard touchdown pass over the middle. The journeyman quarterback then turned toward the Tampa Bay Buccaneers sideline and triumphantly thrust his arm in an upward arc.Time will tell if the Bucs are on a similar trajectory this season http://www.indianapoliscoltsteamonline.com/bobby-okereke-jersey , but there’s no denying they’re off to an encouraging start.Fitzpatrick highlighted a 417-yard, four-touchdown performance with two scoring strikes of more than 50 yards, and the Buccaneers stunned the Saints 48-40 on Sunday.“I’m happy to announce: FitzMagic is alive and well,” Tampa Bay coach Dirk Koetter said of his 35-year-old reserve quarterback, who was starting for suspended 2015 first-overall draft choice Jameis Winston. “Quite a start, huh?”Fitzpatrick completed 21 of 28 passes without an interception and also ran for a short touchdown, bowling over free safety Marcus Williams on his way into the end zone.“I hope somebody had him in fantasy because he went crazy today,” Bucs receiver Mike Evans said of Fitzpatrick. “And he was running the ball — phenomenal game. One of the most complete games I’ve seen.”Coming off a playoff appearance and hosting a team that won only five games last season, the Saints were among the more heavily favored teams in Week 1. But some of the Saints’ defensive players who were instrumental in New Orleans’ success a season earlier had a miserable start to 2018.Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, the 2017 defensive rookie of the year, had trouble covering Evans, who caught seven passes for 147 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown that put the Bucs up 41-24 late in the third quarter.“It isn’t going to get me down. Everybody gets beat,” Lattimore said. “We needed to get slapped in our face one good time to see we’re not on a level we think we’re on.”A season ago, Evans was so frustrated with coverage by Lattimore that he hit him after the whistle and wound up being suspended a game for it. After this latest meeting, Evans said, “I like my odds against anybody http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsteamonline.com/jawaan-taylor-jersey , not just him.”Jackson caught scoring passes of 58 and 36 yards to highlight his five-catch, 146-yard day before leaving with a concussion.Fitzpatrick also threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Chris Godwin.“The talent level in that huddle, with guys that can go up and make plays, it’s a pretty special group,” Fitzpatrick said. “I’m glad we showed it today, but now it’s about consistency.”COMEBACK BIDThe Saints put together a frantic offensive flurry in the fourth quarter, scoring twice on touchdowns by Alvin Kamara — the first a 1-yard run and the second a 7-yard catch, both followed by 2-point conversions. That cut the Saints’ deficit to eight points with 3:31 to go.On third-and-11, Fitzpatrick needed to make one more play — and did. He scrambled to his left for 12 yards at the two-minute warning. With New Orleans out of timeouts, Fitzpatrick was able to run out the clock.“That’s the type of game we’ve played in year’s past as a .500 team,” Saints coach Sean Payton said, alluding to three straight 7-9 seasons from 2014-16 before the Saints returned to the playoffs with 11 wins in 2017. “Nothing carries over from last year. I’ve said it a millions times.”STATS AND TRENDSThe combined 88 points set an NFL record for a regular-season opener, narrowly eclipsing Philadelphia’s 45-42 victory over Washington in September of 1947.New Orleans’ Drew Brees was 37 of 45 for 439 yards and three TDs. Kamara, the 2017 offensive rookie of the year, caught nine passes for 112 yards and one touchdown to go with two touchdown runs. Receiver Michael Thomas set a single-game franchise record by catching 16 passes for 180 yards and a TD, but turned the ball over on a fumble across midfield in the third quarter.Tampa Bay scored on six of its first seven possessions. The only Bucs drive of the first half that did not produce points was when they ran out the final 55 seconds before halftime. Tampa Bay did not punt until their eighth drive about halfway through the third quarter. The Bucs finished with eight passing plays of 20 or more yards.The Saints punted only once in the first half and trailed 31-24 at halftime after Thomas’ 6-yard touchdown catch.FUMBLED OPPORTUNITYWith Mark Ingram serving a four-game suspension for use of a banned substance, the Saints brought in running back Mike Gillislee after he was cut by New England. In his Saints debut http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsteamonline.com/gardner-minshew-ii-jersey , Gillislee fumbled in the second quarter on a hit by Vernon Hargreaves. Cornerback Justin Evans scooped up the loose ball and ran it back for a 34-yard TD.INJURIESBuccaneers: Hargreaves was helped to the locker room with a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter.Saints: New Orleans did not announce any injuries.UP NEXTBuccaneers: Host Philadelphia on Sunday.Saints: Host Cleveland on Sunday. EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Two years away from free agency, Adam Thielen was among the best bargains in the NFL.Facing a tight salary cap situation, the Minnesota Vikings could have waited to reward Thielen, their two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver who was tied for fourth in the league with 113 receptions last season.Waiting, and creating potential tension with team cornerstones, hasn’t been their approach. So the Vikings and Thielen agreed to a four-year, $64 million contract extension last week.“It shows what type of organization this is,” Thielen said this week as players began their first round of organized offseason workouts. “They’re not here to lowball people. They’re not here to take advantage of people. They want to reward the people that helped this football team win games and, ultimately, they want to win games. That’s probably one of the biggest reasons that I want to be here for a long time, because I want to win games. I guess it just shows what this organization is about and how they treat their players.”Thielen, the famously undrafted player from Division II Minnesota State who had the third-most receptions in franchise history last year, signed for an annual average of $16 million on his new deal that is the sixth highest among NFL wide receivers. He can earn as much as $73 million with incentives over the life of the contract covering the 2021-24 seasons.This was the latest move by Minnesota general manager Rick Spielman to maintain the foundation — mostly drafted-and-developed players — of a roster with a recharged Super Bowl aspiration. Thielen’s extension followed those given to wide receiver Stefon Diggs, defensive end Danielle Hunter and linebacker Eric Kendricks in the past year.The Vikings have thus created an environment, particularly on defense, built on remarkable continuity in a league that’s constantly turning over. The front office hasn’t shied away from extensions a year or more before free agency http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/darrell-henderson-jersey , and the players have shown a willingness to stay and forgo the chance to test an open market.“I feel like we just love playing with each other,” Kendricks said. “We know what kind of group we have. We have each other’s backs. I take a lot of trips with these guys in the offseason, and we just enjoy being together, working together. We know what we’re all chasing. I feel like it says a lot about what we’ve got.”Linebacker Anthony Barr was an outlier among recent high draft picks, in 2014, by the Vikings who hit free agency without an extension. He even agreed to join the New York Jets before reconsidering and staying where his heart was for a little less money.“I sent him a text like, ‘Hey, it’s going to be weird not playing with you,’ and he was like, ‘Just wait a second,'” said Kendricks, who has been a teammate of Barr’s since college at UCLA. “I’m like, ‘Oh, I see.’ Everything kind of played out how it did. Couldn’t be happier.”Barr’s decision even struck the typically stoic Harrison Smith. Speaking to reporters this week, the Pro Bowl safety choked up and acknowledged being surprised by the emotion he felt.“He’s one of my best friends,” said Smith, another high draft pick http://www.minnesotavikingsteamonline.com/irv-smith-jr.-jersey , in 2012, who never hit free agency. “Honestly, I wanted him to go get as much money as he could make. Pro sports, it’s how things happen. I obviously wanted him here, as well. So, I wasn’t going to be upset one way or the other. It’s an emotional game, and you make friendships, and you make plays together, and you’re pumped for the guy next to you. It’s why I play.”The feeling is mutual around the team’s facility.Tight end Kyle Rudolph said this week he’d be willing to restructure his contract to help the team’s salary cap situation and thus avoid being released. Defensive end Everson Griffen, the longest-tenured member of the team as a 2010 draft pick, already did that last month. Taking a pay cut was not his preference, of course, but the support he received from the team while taking a leave for mental health issues sure made it easier to stay.“They took care of me and they treated me like family,” Griffen said. “I’ve been here for 10 years. I’ve played good football for them, and I felt like they handled the situation that I was in perfectly. They took me under their wing. They made sure I had everything lined up, and it was a good thing. I just want to repay that. It’s always bigger than football.”