Kyle Pitts Hat-Trick Fuels Falcons Remarkable Fightback Win Against Tampa Bay.

National Football League 2025 Season: The fifteenth week

Kyle Pitts registered three touchdowns as the Atlanta Falcons engineered a dramatic comeback to secure a last-gasp 29-28 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Placekicker Zane Gonzalez booted a game-winning kick as time expired, while Pitts became only the eighth tight end in league history to record three touchdown catches and over 150 yards through the air in a single game.

After starting the season as one of the NFL's early-season pacesetters, the Buccaneers have now dropped from the summit of the AFC South for the first time in 2025, with just 3 games left in the regular season.

They currently possess a 7-7 mark after suffering five of their last six outings. This features consecutive home defeats in the span of 5 days to two divisional rivals who are eliminated from play-off the race.

Game Recap

The Buccaneers started the scoring with a Sean Tucker score before the Falcons held a 14-13 lead at half-time. This came after Pitts, who entered Thursday's game with just a single touchdown all season, claimed his first two touchdowns.

The home team subsequently raced into a 28-14 advantage early in the final quarter after QB Baker Mayfield threw scoring throws to Devin Culp and Chris Godwin Jr.

Veteran signal-caller Kirk Cousins was making his fourth consecutive start after a season-ending injury to Atlanta's starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. The 37-year-old then led the Falcons to the 32nd final period comeback of his illustrious NFL tenure.

Tailback Bijan Robinson found the end zone before Pitts secured his three-touchdown game. Atlanta subsequently won back possession with less than two minutes left on the clock.

And despite being backed up to a difficult third-down situation after a fumble recovery and a ten-yard penalty, Cousins completed crucial throws to Pitts and wideout David Sills V to position the Falcons in range for Gonzalez to kick a 43-yard winning field goal.

Cousins ended the day with 373 passing yards and three touchdown passes to Pitts, who collected 166 receiving yards from eleven receptions.

Postseason Ramifications

Atlanta is now 5-9, and their surprise victory of Tampa Bay did a favour for the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers (7-6) now lead the NFC South and will face the Buccaneers in two of their final four games. Only the division winner is guaranteed a postseason berth.