Fitzpatrick shines again as Bucs surprise Eagles
TAMPA, Fla. — Courtesy of wide receiver DeSean Jackson, Ryan Fitzpatrick rocked a pair of sunglasses and a partially zipped warmup jacket revealing a couple of gold chains and a large pendant resting on his chest.
“It’s nothing,” the Tampa Bay quarterback said of the garb after throwing for more than 400 yards and two touchdowns for the second straight week and leading the Buccaneers to a 27-21 victory over the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
“I think we just have to stay humble,” Fitzpatrick added, a smile crossing his face. “We’ve got to make sure we know how to handle success and all those things. We can’t change who we are.”
Filling in for suspended starter Jameis Winston, Fitzpatrick was 27-of-33 passing for 402 yards and has the suddenly explosive Bucs off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2010.
Jackson scored on a 75-yard reception on the first play of the game, giving him three touchdowns in two games after having that many all last season.
O.J. Howard also had a 75-yard touchdown catch in the first half for Tampa Bay, which stunned New Orleans 48-40 on the road to open the season. It’s a surprising start for a team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2007.
“I think we just developed a lot of confidence in the offseason and through training camp with how we worked, and the way things were going and the rapport with the guys,” Fitzpatrick said. “I think that confidence has carried over into the season.”
Nick Foles threw for 334 yards for the Eagles (1-1), who rallied from a 20-point third-quarter deficit.
The Super Bowl MVP’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Nelson Agholor on fourth down trimmed Tampa Bay’s lead to 27-21 with 2:46 remaining. Fitzpatrick didn’t give the Eagles’ injury-decimated offense a chance to finish the comeback.
“We didn’t win every single game last year. I think people forget that,” Foles said, trying to put the loss in perspective. “There’s a lot of expectations for us, but we can’t put that kind of pressure on ourselves.”
The 35-year-old Fitzpatrick, a 14-year NFL veteran and one of four players in league history to throw touchdown passes for seven franchises, produced a couple first downs on Tampa Bay’s last possession to drain all but 19 seconds off the clock.
“We had our shots. I just feel like if we had got that ball back one more time, we would have a chance to try to win it,” Eagles offensive tackle Jason Peters said. “But we were pinned back there with 20 seconds left, and we didn’t have a lot of options.”
Chris Godwin and Mike Evans had touchdown receptions of 8 and 4 yards, respectively, for the Bucs. Jackson finished with four catches for 129 yards.
The Eagles opened the season with Foles throwing for just 117 yards in an 18-12 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.
They drove 78 yards in 13 plays to pull even with Tampa Bay in the second quarter, only to watch Howard turn a short pass into another long score by eluding two defenders and turning up the left sideline. Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby was unable to chase down the 6-foot6, 251-pound tight end.
Foles finished 35-of48 with no interceptions. Corey Clement scored on a 15-yard run in the first half, and Jay Ajayi’s 2-yard touchdown run began Philadelphia’s rally from a 27-7 deficit.