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National Football League 2025 Season: The fifteenth week

Kyle Pitts notched three touchdowns as the Atlanta Falcons mounted a late rally to snatch a nail-biting 29-28 triumph over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Placekicker Zane Gonzalez converted a game-winning kick as time ran out, while Pitts etched his name as only the eighth tight end in NFL history to achieve three receiving catches and more than 150 yards through the air in a single contest.

After beginning the year as one of the NFL's initial pacesetters, the Buccaneers have now dropped from the summit of the AFC South for the first time in 2025, with just 3 contests left in the regular season.

They now hold a 7-7 mark after suffering 5 of their previous six games. This features consecutive home defeats in the span of 5 days to two division opponents who are eliminated from postseason contention.

Contest Recap

The Buccaneers opened the scoring with a Sean Tucker touchdown before the Falcons held a 14-13 advantage at the intermission. This followed Pitts, who entered Thursday's matchup with just a single touchdown 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 passes to Devin Culp and Chris Godwin Jr.

Veteran signal-caller Kirk Cousins was starting his fourth consecutive start after a year-ending injury to Atlanta's primary quarterback Michael Penix Jr. The veteran proceeded to guide the Falcons to the 32nd fourth-quarter rally of his distinguished career.

Running back Bijan Robinson found the end zone before Pitts secured his hat-trick. Atlanta subsequently won back possession with under two minutes left on the clock.

And even after being pinned to a third and 28 after recovering his own fumble and a ten-yard infraction, Cousins completed key passes to Pitts and wideout David Sills V to position the Falcons in field goal range for Gonzalez to kick a 43-yard winning field goal.

Cousins finished with 373 yards through the air and three scoring passes to Pitts, who collected 166 yards from eleven receptions.

Postseason Implications

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 final four matchups. Only the team that wins the division is assured a play-off spot.