Kyle Pitts has now scored 14 scores since being drafted as the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft.
National Football League 2025 Season: The fifteenth week
Kyle Pitts scored three scores as the Atlanta Falcons engineered a dramatic rally to snatch a last-gasp 29-28 triumph over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Kicker Zane Gonzalez booted a game-winning field goal as time ran out, while Pitts etched his name as only the eighth tight end in league history to achieve three touchdown catches and more than 150 receiving yards in a single game.
After starting the season as one of the NFL's early-season leaders, the Buccaneers have now fallen from the summit of the AFC South for the initial time in 2025, with just 3 games remaining in the regular campaign.
They now hold a 7-7 record after losing 5 of their last six games. This features consecutive home defeats in the space of five days to two divisional rivals who are out of play-off the race.
Game Recap
The Buccaneers started the scoring with a Sean Tucker score before the Falcons took a 14-13 advantage at the intermission. This came after Pitts, who entered Thursday's matchup with just one score all year, hauled in his first two scores.
The Buccaneers subsequently raced into a 28-14 lead early in the fourth period after QB Baker Mayfield threw scoring passes to Devin Culp and Chris Godwin Jr.
Experienced quarterback Kirk Cousins was starting his fourth consecutive start after a season-ending injury to Atlanta's primary quarterback Michael Penix Jr. The veteran proceeded to guide the Falcons to the thirty-second fourth-quarter rally of his distinguished NFL tenure.
Running back Bijan Robinson found the end zone before Pitts completed his hat-trick. Atlanta then regained possession with under two minutes remaining.
And despite being pinned to a difficult third-down situation after recovering his own fumble 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 finished with 373 yards through the air and three touchdown passes to Pitts, who amassed 166 yards from eleven receptions.
Postseason Implications
Atlanta improved to 5-9, and their upset of Tampa Bay greatly helped the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers (7-6) now lead the NFC South and are set to face the Buccaneers in two of their last four games. Only the division winner is assured a play-off spot.
