The Minnesota Vikings have secured yet another core player with a long-term contract Danny Trevathan Jersey , signing wide receiver Stefon Diggs to a five-year extension and moving the star of the "Minneapolis Miracle" pass into the NFL's top 10 highest-paid players at his position.

Diggs has yet to post a 1,000-yard or 100-catch season, but his ability was on full display when he turned a sideline catch into a 61-yard touchdown as time ran out to lift the Vikings to victory over New Orleans in last season's playoffs. He formed a prolific tandem with Adam Thielen last year, helping Case Keenum stabilize the passing game after Sam Bradford was injured, and over his first three seasons has been one of the biggest steals of the 2015 draft.

"I love it here. I truly do, and I'm just happy I'll be here for a while now," Diggs said after practice Tuesday. "That's why I want to play for them for selecting me in the fifth round. It was a bumpy road that day, and I just remember getting a call, and they gave me a chance. They believed in me, and they won, and going forward they pushed me to be where I am now."

Now the Vikings have a new quarterback in Kirk Cousins, who was elated by the news that Diggs is under contract through 2023.

"What I most like is he loves football and loves to come and work, because as a quarterback it can be miserable if you're out here with someone who is here to just get a paycheck and leave," Cousins said. "He wants to work."

The Vikings offense was at the new practice facility on Monday night past 9 p.m. working on playbook installation.

"I've been a part of some locker rooms where by 9 o'clock, some of your guys are sleeping in the back row, not taking notes, not paying attention. They're basically checked out, texting or whatever," Cousins said. "That's not him. That's not these guys."

The new deal is valued at $72 million plus an additional $9 million in possible incentives, according to a person with knowledge of the contract who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the details. Diggs, who will play the final season of his rookie deal for the original base salary of slightly more than $1.9 million, received a $15 million signing bonus.

"He's been a good person off the field. He's been a good person on the field as far as that Morgan Moses Jersey ," head coach Mike Zimmer said. "When he messes up, he knows. One time I had him in my office, and I asked him ... a question, and he said, 'Now, coach, you know you knew the answer when you asked the question.' He's a smart guy."

Since Cousins signed his fully guaranteed $84 million contract in March, the Vikings have signed linebacker Eric Kendricks, defensive end Danielle Hunter and now Diggs to multi-year deals. The Vikings now have Cousins, Diggs, Thielen, running back Dalvin Cook, left tackle Riley Reiff, right guard Mike Remmers and center Pat Elflein all under team control through at least the 2020 season. On defense, the same goes for Hunter, Kendricks, defensive end Everson Griffen, defensive tackle Linval Joseph, cornerback Xavier Rhodes and safety Harrison Smith. That's a lot of star power to squeeze under the salary cap, with linebacker Anthony Barr the only prominent player with an expiring contract this year.

"Continuity, to me, is very important Joe Looney Jersey , and it's not a luxury we have in the NFL these days," Cousins said. "There is a lot of change year in and year out, so I've come to expect that and understand you can't use that as an excuse."

Diggs has come a long way since his father, Aron Diggs, died of heart failure in 2008. He told his son in his final months to make sure to look after his mother and two brothers, and for Diggs this new deal was the consummation of that directive.

"I'm happy that I can look at my mom and smile and tell her that everything is going to be OK," Diggs said. "I'm just very thankful for everybody involved."

In a story April 3 about NHL player Eric Staal, The Associated Press misidentified the location of his Canadian hometown. Thunder Bay is located in Ontario.

A corrected version of the story is below:

With 40 goals for playoffs-bound Wild, Staal has right fit

With 40 goals for playoffs-bound Wild, Staal has found right place for career resurgence

By DAVE CAMPBELL

AP Sports Writer

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Eric Staal was coming off his least productive NHL season since he was a teenage rookie with Carolina when Minnesota took a flier on him two summers ago to add some depth at center.

The three-year contract was modest for a player with Staal’s ability and accomplishments. The expectations were, too. Three consecutive seasons of decline in points per game, after all, don’t provide a hint that the scoring touch or passing knack is primed for resurgence.

Bruce Boudreau could see the rebound potential, though. His first day of training camp with the Wild happened to be Staal’s practice debut with his new club, and a strong impression was made on the new head coach.

”I said, `You know what? Everybody was wrong,”’ Boudreau said. ”Because he did the skate test on the very first day, and he blew everybody out of the water. So I said to the staff, `He should be able to play for us.”’

Staal has done much more for the Wild than simply prove he can keep up and stabilize a key position with some savviness and leadership. Nobody on the team has scored more since he arrived, and with 40 goals this season he’s tied for sixth in the league through Monday’s games.

”I never thought a specific number was a goal. I don’t ever usually think like that,” Staal said. ”Once you start a season Cameron Meredith Jersey , it can go a lot of different ways, but once the puck starts hitting the back of the net and you’re gaining confidence that way, you want to hold on to it as long as you can and accumulate as much as you can to help your team win.”

Staal became just the second player in NHL history, joining Gordie Howe, to record a 40-goal season at least nine years apart with none in between. Slumps can factor into that, but so does dedication.

”Look, he’s won a Stanley Cup. He’s won an Olympic medal. He’s got all the money that he’s ever going to need,” Boudreau said. ”But when he came here he wanted to prove to the world that he’s still a really good player, and to me he has.”

The lanky 33-year-old with the left-handed shot has been a big reason why the Wild, despite some rough patches of the schedule and significant injury absences by several of their best skaters, have clinched a spot in the playoffs for the sixth straight season.

”You want that, especially as a player who’s in the second half of his career. You want to make sure you’re in a spot to try to win again, and coming here I felt gave me that chance,” said Staal, the second overall pick in the 2003 draft who won the Stanley Cup in 2006 at age 21 but only returned to the playoffs once more with the Hurricanes. ”We’ve still got some work to do here, but hopefully we can finish strong.”

Staal only has one goal-less stretch on his ledger longer than four games in a row, when he played six consecutive contests without scoring from Jan. 9-22. He still contributed four assists over that span. Not coincidentally, the Wild have only one losing streak larger than two. They dropped three in a row from Nov. 4-8.

”He’s a guy we’ve definitely looked to to help lead us,” said left wing Jason Zucker, one of the many linemates Staal has saddled up to this season – without, Boudreau said beamingly, a single complaint.

Durability has been one crucial component of his value Adam Shaheen Jersey , of course. Staal has yet to miss a game since signing the $10.5 million deal on July 1, 2016. The emotional steadiness he has contributed can’t be overlooked, either.

”He’s been through the best of teams. He’s been through the worst of teams. He’s been the leader on all of these teams,” Boudreau said. ”He’s had to make sure he’s the steady one, because if he gets too high, maybe the rest of the group gets too high. If he was one to get too low, maybe everybody else would follow his lead.”

The Wild actually left Staal exposed in the expansion draft, banking on his age being less attractive to the Vegas Golden Knights. His salary cap hit is only the ninth-highest on the roster.

”If he was playing in Toronto, he’d be up for the MVP,” Boudreau said.

Settling in Minnesota was more than satisfying for Staal, with the perennial postseason opportunities and the relative proximity to his hometown of Thunder Bay, Ontario, about a six-hour drive away. He and his wife, Tanya, have been able to raise sons Parker, Levi and Finley, in a similar northern culture and climate that he was raised in, delighting in seeing the boys at 8, 6 and 3 years old take to the local hockey rinks or eagerly hop on their sleds after the latest snowfall.

”All that stuff I grew up doing and loving, and now I’m kind of living it back through them,” Staal said. ”It’s definitely made it a ton of fun.”

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