Kyle Pitts Hat-Trick Fuels Falcons Remarkable Fightback Win Against Buccaneers.
The star tight end has now scored 14 touchdowns since being selected as the fourth overall pick in the 2021 selection process.
National Football League 2025 Season: Week 15
Kyle Pitts scored three scores as the Atlanta Falcons engineered a late comeback to snatch a last-gasp 29-28 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Kicker Zane Gonzalez booted a clutch kick as time ran out, while Pitts etched his name as only the 8th tight end in league history to achieve three receiving catches and more than 150 receiving yards in a single contest.
After beginning the year as one of the NFL's initial leaders, the Buccaneers have now fallen from the top of the AFC South for the initial time in 2025, with just three games left in the regular campaign.
They currently possess a 7-7 record after losing five of their previous six games. This features consecutive home-field defeats in the span of five days to two division opponents who are eliminated from play-off contention.
Game Summary
The Buccaneers started the scoring with a Sean Tucker touchdown before the Falcons took a 14-13 lead at the intermission. This followed Pitts, who came into Thursday's matchup with just one touchdown all season, hauled in his initial pair of touchdowns.
The home team then surged into a 28-14 lead early in the final period after QB Baker Mayfield threw touchdown throws to Devin Culp and Chris Godwin Jr.
Veteran signal-caller Kirk Cousins was making his fourth consecutive start after a year-ending injury to Atlanta's primary quarterback Michael Penix Jr. The 37-year-old proceeded to guide the Falcons to the thirty-second final period comeback of his distinguished career.
Tailback Bijan Robinson got into the end zone before Pitts completed his three-touchdown game. Atlanta then regained the ball with less than two minutes left on the clock.
And even after being backed up to a third and 28 after recovering his own fumble and a 10-yard penalty, Cousins made crucial throws to Pitts and receiver David Sills V to position the Falcons in field goal range for Gonzalez to kick a 43-yard game winner.
Cousins ended the day with 373 yards through the air and three scoring throws to Pitts, who amassed 166 yards from 11 receptions.
Postseason Ramifications
Atlanta is now 5-9, and their surprise victory of Tampa Bay greatly helped the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers (7-6) now sit atop the NFC South and are set to face the Buccaneers in two of their last 4 matchups. Only the team that wins the division is guaranteed a postseason berth.