Amid another lost season for the Falcons, Kirk Cousins delivered a night he and his team won’t soon forget. Atlanta rallied from 14 points down in the fourth quarter for a stunning 29-28 win over the Buccaneers. Zane Gonzalez nailed a 43-yard field goal as time expired to cap an incredible rally.
How incredible? The Falcons hadn’t won a game they trailed 14+ in the fourth quarter since 1993.
Tampa Bay appeared to be in control leading 28-14 in the fourth quarter, but Bijan Robinson scored a touchdown to cut Atlanta’s deficit to 28-20 (the two-point conversion attempt failed).
Then Dee Alford picked off Baker Mayfield on the ensuing drive to give the visitors renewed life, and Kirk Cousins found Kyle Pitts for his third touchdown of the night. Once again, though, the two-point conversion failed.
The Atlanta defense got a stop to give the offense one more shot with two minutes left and no timeouts, and Cousins got the offense moving in the right direction again with a big completion to David Sills V. But Haason Reddick came up with a huge sack, and Atlanta committed a holding penalty — its 19th accepted penalty on the night, most by any team this season — and the odds seemed even longer.
But Cousins completed a checkdown to Kyle Pitts and then converted a fourth-and-14 with a 21-yard pass to Sills. That led to Gonzalez’s game winner and a stunned Tampa Bay crowd.
Pitts put forth a truly marvelous effort: 11 catches for 166 yards and three touchdowns. He’s the first tight end to go 10/150/3 in a game since Shannon Sharpe in 1996. Robinson finished with 175 yards from scrimmage (93 rushing, 82 receiving) and a touchdown.
Tampa Bay (7-7) has now lost five of its last six games, and the Panthers (7-6) now lead the NFC South. Carolina faces New Orleans on Sunday.
Brutal loss by Tampa Bay
They say history is written by the victors, but with the Falcons already out of playoff contention, we have to first focus on the Buccaneers’ collapse. Consider the following:
- The Buccaneers led 28-14 with under 10 minutes left. Tampa Bay had won 74 straight games when leading by 14+ in the fourth quarter. Their last such loss was in 2003.
- The Falcons committed 19 penalties for 125 yards. It’s the most penalties in a game in franchise history and the most by any team this season. It’s the most penalties by any team in a win since 2016.
- Darnell Mooney fumbled with seven Buccaneers surrounding the ball. Somehow, Robinson came up with the ball.
- The Falcons overcame a third-and-28 and a fourth-and-14 on the game-winning drive.
The Buccaneers were down Tykee Smith, and they lost Zyon McCollum to injury during the game, but this is a stunning defensive meltdown. The Falcons were without Michael Penix Jr. They were without Drake London. Darnell Mooney wasn’t 100%. And yet Tampa Bay had zero answers for Pitts all night, sacked Cousins just once and allowed 111 yards on 21 carries (5.3 yards per carry).
This was the most points scored Atlanta since Week 4. Again, only two wide receivers — and five players total — even had a single catch. Pitts had arguably the best tight end game ever. Cousins lit up every level of the defense. Seemingly no one could tackle Robinson consistently.
The collapse isn’t solely on the defense. In fact, it was the defense that forced a turnover to set up the offense with a short field for the touchdown that gave Tampa Bay a 28-14 lead. Here were the final two possessions for the Buccaneers offense:
- four plays, 15 yards, interception
- six plays, eight yards, punt
Mayfield took five sacks and threw an awful interception. For all of the moments of brilliance, his miscues cost him and his team dearly.
Mayfield suffered a shoulder injury in a Week 7 loss to the Lions and simply hasn’t been the same since. Whether it’s the shoulder or regressing to the mean, his play has fallen off steeply. He has six turnovers in the last five games.
Still, it is worth noting the Buccaneers have a 59% chance to make the playoffs according to SportsLine, in large part due to two remaining games against the Panthers. If Tampa Bay can sweep that, they’ll be in. But the margin for error just got a lot smaller.
Kirk Cousins a thorn in Buccaneers’ side again
Given the circumstances — out of the playoff race, backup quarterback, down late — this is an absolute stunner. But Buccaneers fans know this feeling all too well against Kirk Cousins.
- 2015 (with Washington): Leads 24-point comeback vs. Buccaneers, largest in franchise history (This is where the famous “You like that!” quote is from.)
- 2024 (with Atlanta): Threw for franchise-record 509 yards as well as four touchdowns, including the game winner in overtime
- 2024 (with Atlanta): Threw four touchdown passes in 31-26 win
And now this: 373 yards, three touchdowns, zero turnovers and a win. Yes, the Tampa Bay defense left a lot to be desired with how it defended the short tosses, but Cousins made some big-boy throws in this one as well.
This was Cousins’ 32nd career game-winning drive, which moves him inside the top 20 all-time. He’s had a rollercoaster career — one that’s been mostly down in Atlanta — but he showed again he can produce some magic.
Robinson, Pitts, James Pearce Jr. shine
In Pitts, London, Robinson and Penix, Atlanta used four straight top-10 picks on offensive players from 2021-24. The results, frankly, haven’t matched. Pitts has been far too inconsistent. London has looked like a star, Robinson a superstar. Penix remains a big question mark.
But on at least this night, Robinson and Pitts showed why they can be foundational pieces for this offense. Pitts looked very much the part of a former No. 4 overall pick, a rare combination of size, speed and athleticism. Robinson made defenders look absolutely silly.
The Falcons swung the pendulum back the other way in 2025, drafting Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. in the first round. And while that was a short-sighted move (the Rams hold Atlanta’s 2026 first-round pick), at least they’re showing flashes. Pearce sacked Mayfield twice and has 7.5 sacks over his last six games. Walker had a half-sack and is up to 5.5 on the season.
The Falcons still have a lot to fix, and it may not matter if Penix either can’t stay healthy or can’t play at a high enough level. But nights like tonight show there’s strong young talent at some of the game’s most impactful positions.
