The Atlanta Falcons defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 29-28 with a walk-off Zane Gonzalez 43-yard field goal as time expired inside Raymond James Stadium.
Both teams traded punts on their opening drives to begin the Thursday night clash. The Bucs then cashed in off a n 11-play, 83-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown rush by Sean Tucker. The Bucs brought in nose tackle Vita Vee, who served as the fullback. A couple plays before, Jalen McMillan was ruled down by contact after the 20-yard touchdown play was reversed. The Falcons’ ensuing drive culminated in a Zane Gonzalez 31-yard field goal but it was nullified by a penalty on Zyon McCollum that set up the visiting team at first and goal. The next play, Kirk Cousins hit Kyle Pitts Jr. for an eight-yard scoring strike to tie the game at seven early in the second quarter.
Late in the second frame, the Bucs were forced to settle for a Chase McLaughlin 49-yard field goal despite a 12-yard gain by Mike Evans on a corner route, a 12-yard gain by Emeka Egbuka on a physical grab and spin move and a 19-yard pickup by Jalen McMillan. The Falcons answered with a four-play, 65-yard scoring drive. Pitts picked up 35 yards and followed suit as the recipient of Cousins’ 17-yard touchdown pass. The Bucs moved down the field on the following drive, courtesy of an Evans’ 33-yard gain in which he faked the corner route and once the defensive back bit, he continued running for the explosive gain, however, the club had to settle for a McLaughlin 52-yard field goal.
Midway through the third frame, the Bucs traveled 90 yards on nine plays, with the drive culminating in a six-yard touchdown catch by tight end Devin Culp. Evans spurred the score with a 45-yard gain off an acrobatic, high-point grab over Cobee Bryant. The Bucs next successful drive, including a 20-yard gain by Irving off a wildcat read option, ended in a punt following an incompletion to Tez Johnson on third down. The defense then followed up with a takeaway. Christian Izien forced a Robinson fumble and Jacob Parrish recovered at the Atlanta 25-yard line. The Bucs were able to capitalize with a touchdown. Mayfield faked the handoff to Tucker and found Chris Godwin Jr. in the end zone on a three-yard touchdown pass. Following the successful two-point attempt to Godwin, the Bucs took a 28-14 lead in the fourth.
The Falcons’ answered with an eight-play scoring drive that ended in a six-yard touchdown run by Robinson. Atlanta’s two-point attempt failed, making it a 28-20 game. On the subsequent drive, Mayfield’s pass intended for Evans was intercepted by Dee Alford at the Atlanta 33-yard line. The Falcons took advantage with a seven-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to Pitts. The two-point attempt failed after Antoine Winfield Jr. swarmed Cousins, forcing an incompletion.
On the following drive, Cousins was sacked by Haason Reddick and he punched the ball out. It was ruekld a simultaneous recovery and the Falcons stayed on the field. Gonzalez kicked a walk-off 43-yarc field goal to give Atlanta a 29-28 win.
TOP PERFORMERS 🏈
- Passing: QB Baker Mayfield: 19/34 for 277 yards – 2 TDs & 1 INT
- Rushing: RB Bucky Irving: 16 rushes for 60 yards
- Receiving: WR Mike Evans: 6 catches for 132 yards
- Defense: S Antoine Winfield Jr.: 13 total tackles
- Passing: QB Kirk Cousins: 30/44 for 373 yards – 3 TDs
- Rushing: RB Bijan Robinson: 18 rushes for 93 yards
- Receiving: TE Kyle Pitts: 11 catches for 166 yards – 3 TDs
- Defense: DE James Pearce Jr.: 3 total tackles, 2.0 sacks
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