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NEW ORLEANS -- After Drew Brees broke another NFL record with his latest 400-plus-yard passing performance, he stood on a podium and moved his right hand in an ascending motion while discussing the direction of the New Orleans Saints.We want to be on this trajectory, Brees said as he moved his hand up and away from his body. I feel like we are.Brees passed for 465 yards and four touchdowns, Wil Lutz kicked a 52-yard field goal with 11 seconds left, and New Orleans pulled out a 41-38 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.With his 15th 400-yard game, Brees broke a tie with Peyton Manning for the most all time in the regular season.Brees also led the Saints (2-3) to a second straight victory while Carolina (1-5) lost its fourth straight despite the return of quarterback Cam Newton, who missed last weeks loss to Tampa Bay because of a concussion.Newton passed for 322 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for a 2-yard score and threw a 2-point conversion to Devin Funchess that tied the game at 38 with 2:58 left, completing a comeback from an early 21-0 deficit.However, Newton was also intercepted by Sterling Moore in the back of the end zone, stalling a promising first-half drive.Newton had little to say afterward, offering terse, vague answers to media inquiries or simply saying, next question. His demeanor nonetheless left little doubt how displeased he was with yet another close loss.Meanwhile, the quarterbacks coaches and teammates made it clear Newtons performance was the least of their concerns.He made some really good decisions, Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. When you score 38 points, you need to give yourself more of a chance to win.Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly credited Carolinas offense for playing well and added, We just have to tighten some things up defensively. We just have to make a play.Tight end Josh Hill scored the Saints final TD on a difficult, leaping 8-yard catch that was initially ruled incomplete.But coach Sean Payton challenged the call and officials ruled on review that Hill had possession long enough for a completion before defensive back Zack Sanchez knocked the ball from Hills grasp.Brees didnt seem bothered that the Saints needed all of his prolific production to win and nearly squandered a three- TD lead.These are defining wins. These are wins you can draw from as the season goes along and really get a lot of strength from, Brees said. It gives you great confidence and poise when situations arise in the future.UNCONVENTIONAL TDSCoby Fleener ran for a 2-yard touchdown on his first career carry -- an end-around on a fourth-and-1 play that capped New Orleans opening drive. He also caught a 50-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter on a play that Brees said didnt quite develop as drawn up because Fleener and receiver Willie Snead ran their routes too close together, causing a convergence of players over the middle.All of a sudden all these bodies were in this melee and heres Coby, coming down with it and taking it the distance, Brees said. It worked out nicely.CLUTCH KICKINGLutzs winning kick came after hed missed an earlier attempt from 53 yards. Lutz said that the moment Carolina tied it at 38, he told punter Thomas Morstead, who also holds on field goals, and long snapper Justin Drescher, Lets go win the game.Like Ive been saying all year -- its about the next kick, Lutz said.TOP TARGETSSaints receiver Brandin Cooks had an 87-yard touchdown catch to highlight his career-high 173-yard outing on seven catches. Saints rookie Michael Thomas caught his third touchdown pass in as many games. Fleener had six catches for 74 yards.Funchess caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Newton and Carolina tight end Ed Dickson hauled in a 1-yard TD that Newton tossed as he scrambled to his left.PENALTY PRONEThe Saints were flagged for pass interference three times at or near the goal line, and the Panthers cashed in all three times with touchdowns. In all, New Orleans had 10 penalties for 126 yards.Panthers penalties included Kawann Shorts unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for leveling Brees after his touchdown toss to Hill.It looked like he straight punched me in the mouth, Brees said. Thats what it felt like.BACK IN ACTIONPanthers running back Jonathan Stewart returned after missing three games with a hamstring injury and rushed for 85 yards on 19 carries, including two short touchdowns in the fourth quarter.Hill played for the first time since injuring his ankle in Week 1.INJURIESSaints left tackle Andrus Peat, who was filling in for injured starter Terron Armstead, left the game late in the first half with an apparent left leg injury. He was replaced by veteran Tony Hills. ... Saints rookie defensive tackle David Onyemata also appeared to have a leg injury after a pileup near the New Orleans goal line in the fourth quarter and gingerly walked off the field. ... Panthers cornerback Daryl Worley was evaluated for a possible concussion.NEXT UPPanthers: Carolina has a bye week to try to figure out how to reverse its sinking fortunes.Saints: New Orleans travels to Kansas City next Sunday.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFLJoel Iyiegbuniwe Jersey . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Deon Bush Jersey . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament. http://www.cheapbearsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-taquan-mizzell-sr-jersey Matt Betts Jersey . John Lucas, signed as a mentor for rookie Trey Burke, showed he can score if required, scoring 12 points of his 16 points in the second quarter as Utah built an 18-point lead. Michael Joseph Jersey . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover.Minnesota has a gleaming new stadium. The Vikings are division champions for the first time in six years. Now theyre reeling from the loss of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater for the entire season.The headlines around the division sure have a purple shade.Theres still plenty of green, or rather Green Bay, left to repaint the NFC North horizon.Aaron Rodgers and the proud Packers have wide receiver Jordy Nelson back from the right ACL injury that kept him from playing in 2015, aiming for repossession of the title.Rodgers came back leaner after some dietary changes, recharged for another run at a Super Bowl trophy hes touched once -- five-plus years ago.My 12th season, all with the same team, its exciting, said Rodgers, who will turn 33 on Dec. 2. It actually gets a little sweeter I think every single year.Dethroning the Vikings would sure be delicious. Fittingly, the Packers will be Minnesotas opponent on Sept. 18 for their regular-season opener at U.S. Bank Stadium in front of a crowd of 66,000 and a Sunday night national TV audience.Bridgewater, who dislocated his left knee and tore the anterior cruciate ligament in practice last Tuesday, will be relegated to inspirational pregame speaker for that one.Were not looking for excuses. Were going to go out and fight like we always do, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said after Bridgewater was hurt. Everybody can count us out if they want, but I think that would be the wrong thing to do.While it appears Shaun Hill will step in for now, the Vikings also acquired quarterback Sam Bradford from the Philadelphia Eagles on Saturday for a pair of draft picks, including a first-rounder in 2017.Keeping up with Minnesota and Green Bay will be a challenge for Detroit and Chicago, with the Lions trying to avoid replicating that 1-7 start in 2015 and the Bears burdened by a five-year absence from the playoffs.Heres a quick glance around the NFC North as this Great Lakes states quartet gets ready for the regular season:UNDER COVERThe Vikings have moved back inside after a two-year stint at the University of Minnesota while their $1.1 billion, ship-shaped, see-through venue was being built. The gawking will go on all season, with the translucent, space-age roof and the ground-to-ceiling glass on the front side giving the enclosed stadium an outdoor feel.The controlled climate ought to help a passing game that has lagged near the bottom of the league, but losing Bridgewater sure wont. Hill, a 15-year veteran, and Bradford will bbe aided by the additions this season of left guard Alex Boone and wide receiver Laquon Treadwell.ddddddddddddDIGGING INTo take back the division title theyve won eight times in 14 years, the Packers need some improvement on defense. Linebacker Clay Matthews has moved back outside to his natural position, after a solid performance playing inside to fill in.That has put the spotlight once again on the men in the middle, a position that has often been in flux during the past decade under coach Mike McCarthy.Jake Ryan and Sam Barrington are the expected starters for now. Ryan cracked the starting lineup down the stretch as a rookie fourth-round draft pick, and Barrington has been working his way back from a foot injury that cost him most of the season. The Packers ranked 21st and 23rd in yards rushing allowed in the NFL the past two years.AIR BEARSAlshon Jeffery was the only player who topped 500 yards receiving for the Bears last season, and calf, hamstring, groin and shoulder problems limited him to nine games. The seventh pick in the 2015 draft, Kevin White, missed his rookie season because of a stress fracture in his left shin. That left Jay Cutler without much to work with in the passing game.With stalwart running back Matt Forte and talented tight end Martellus Bennett gone, therell be even more onus on Jeffery and White to not only stay healthy but produce like a top-flight tandem. Jeremy Langford will be the featured runner, now that Forte has joined the New York Jets.GETTING GROUNDEDDetroits replacement of Calvin Johnson, following the star wide receivers surprise retirement at age 30, will be under scrutiny all fall. Newcomers Marvin Jones, Anquan Boldin and Andre Roberts, who have 25 seasons of experience in the league between them, are getting settled with quarterback Matthew Stafford to supplement Golden Tate.Running back Ameer Abdullah, along with third-down standout Theo Riddick, is really the one to watch, though. The Lions ranked last in the league in rushing yards last season when Abdullah was a rookie. Offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, under whom Stafford thrived after a midseason change, has been tasked with establishing better balance.PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISHPackers, Vikings, Lions, Bears.---Online:AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL coverage on Twitter: http://www.tFL coverage on Twitter: http://wwwseball Jerseys[/url] ' ' '