Fitzpatrick, Bucs stun Saints

Ryan Fitzpatrick backpedalled giddily for about 20 yards as he watched 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, but there’s no denying they’re off to an encouraging start.

Fitzpatrick highlighted a 417-yard, fourtouchdown 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 firstoverall 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 favoured 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.