The Falcons escape with another last-second win over Tampa Bay

When Atlanta and Tampa Bay last met earlier this season, a spectacular offensive performance led to a dramatic overtime victory for the Falcons. Sunday's rematch in Tampa once again ended in a playoff, and once again Atlanta emerged victorious, this time with a 31-26 victory.

Once again, Kirk Cousins ​​​​had a spectacular game against the Bucs, throwing four touchdowns. On the other side of the ball, the Falcons' defense largely shut down Tampa Bay in the second half, intercepting Baker Mayfield twice on three second-half series. But a crucial fumble by Atlanta in the fourth quarter and a later missed field goal gave Mayfield a chance to win the game, and he came within a few yards of a Hail Mary pass to do just that.

There were numerous storylines going into this game, starting with division supremacy at stake. The NFC South is now split between haves (Falcons, Bucs) and have-nots (Saints, Panthers), meaning this game – the final shot the two teams will have against each other in the regular season – was particularly significant.

Tampa Bay is also dealing with the significant loss of its two strongest offensive weapons: wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Evans is out week-to-week while Godwin is out for the year, and that means the Bucs will have to make adjustments to their all-out aerial attack that sustained them through the first half of the season. Mayfield came into the game with a league-leading 18 touchdown passes, but 11 of those went to Evans or Godwin.

The game started ugly for the Bucs when Rachaad White blew two plays and Atlanta turned that into their first touchdown of the game. But Mayfield quickly adjusted – briefly – to the absence of his two Titanic receivers and combined a powerful rushing attack with some well-judged passes. Tight end Cade Otton caught Mayfield's first touchdown pass and White his second, giving Tampa Bay an early 14-7 lead in the second quarter.

Atlanta tight end Kyle Pitts caught his second touchdown pass of the day shortly afterwards. But the game almost ended in disaster when Pitts faded at the end of the run and Antoine Winfield Jr. knocked the ball loose as Pitts crossed the goal line.

The play stalled, tying the score at 14, and five minutes into the game, Cousins ​​found Darnell Mooney for a pretty 30-yard touchdown reception. The teams traded field goals in the final minute of the first half, and Atlanta's lead was 24-17 at halftime.

Both attacks cooled off at the start of the second half. Bijan Robinson extended Atlanta's lead to 31-17 with a nifty touchdown run, while Mayfield had two interceptions. But Atlanta wasn't able to take advantage of either, and that would end up costing the Falcons.

A botched exchange between Cousins ​​and Tyler Allgeier led back into the Atlanta end zone for a safety, and on the ensuing possession Mayfield led the Bucs on a masterful 12-play, 73-yard touchdown drive to get within five points at the 31 come -26, just under seven minutes before the end of the game.

Cousins ​​developed a methodical push that he highlighted with a 13-yard run – his longest run of the season at 12 yards. Cousins ​​then converted a crucial 4th-and-1 quarterback sneak to keep the drive alive. But Younghoe Koo missed a 41-yard field goal that would have increased Atlanta's lead to eight.

Mayfield took over at his own 36 with no timeouts, trailing by five points. The Bucs reached the Atlanta 33, but a Hail Mary attempt sailed out of the end zone.

Cousins ​​finished 23 of 29 for 276 yards and those four touchdowns, while Mayfield threw for 330 yards on 50 attempts. His three touchdowns were offset by two interceptions. Atlanta is now firmly in control of the NFC South, while the Bucs still have a lot of work to do to get back in the hunt.