02 Oct 2026
Kyle Pitts Three-Touchdown Performance Powers Falcons Remarkable Comeback Win Against Tampa Bay.
The star tight end has now recorded 14 touchdowns since being drafted as the number four overall pick in the 2021 draft.
National Football League 2025 Season: The fifteenth week
Kyle Pitts registered three scores as the Atlanta Falcons engineered a late rally to snatch a last-gasp 29-28 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Kicker Zane Gonzalez converted a game-winning field goal as time expired, while Pitts became only the eighth tight end in NFL history to record three receiving catches and over 150 yards through the air in a single game.
After beginning the season as one of the NFL's initial pacesetters, the Buccaneers have now fallen from the summit of the AFC South for the initial time in 2025, with just three contests remaining in the regular campaign.
They currently possess a 7-7 mark after losing five of their last six outings. This features consecutive home-field defeats in the space of five days to two division opponents who are out of postseason contention.
Game Summary
The Buccaneers started the scoring with a Sean Tucker touchdown before the Falcons took a 14-13 advantage at the intermission. This followed Pitts, who entered Thursday's matchup with just one score all year, hauled in his initial pair of touchdowns.
The home team then surged into a 28-14 lead early in the final quarter after QB Baker Mayfield threw scoring throws to Devin Culp and Chris Godwin Jr.
Veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins was making his fourth consecutive start after a season-ending injury to Atlanta's primary quarterback Michael Penix Jr. The veteran then led the Falcons to the thirty-second fourth-quarter rally of his illustrious NFL tenure.
Tailback Bijan Robinson got into the end zone before Pitts secured his hat-trick. Atlanta then regained possession with less than two minutes left on the clock.
And even after being pinned to a third and 28 after a fumble recovery and a ten-yard penalty, Cousins made key throws to Pitts and wideout David Sills V to get the Falcons in field goal range for Gonzalez to drill a 43-yard game winner.
Cousins ended the day with 373 yards through the air and three scoring throws to Pitts, who collected 166 receiving yards from 11 catches.
Postseason Ramifications
Atlanta improved to 5-9, and their upset of Tampa Bay did a favour for the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers (7-6) now sit atop the NFC South and will face the Buccaneers in two of their last four games. Only the team that wins the division is guaranteed a play-off spot.