The series is deadlocked once again.
The Atlanta Falcons are back in divisional play for their first divisional rematch of the season. Following the victory against the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay in Week 7, Atlanta succeeded in re-tying the series history at 30-30.
The Bucs shifted the pendulum in their favor during the brief Tom Brady era, winning Brady’s first five games as a Buccaneer against the Falcons before he was pulled at halftime in the 2022 season finale, opening the door for a Falcon breakthrough.
With that win and the win earlier this season, the Birds have now won back to back games against Tampa for the first time since 2018. That was the tail end of a five-game winning streak of their own in this head to head matchup.
The win a few weeks ago was also Atlanta’s first triumph in Tampa Bay since the season finale in 2019, when Deion Jones had a walk off pick 6 against Jameis Winston in overtime.
Last Meeting
It was a battle for first place in the division when the 3-3 Falcons collided with the 3-2 Bucs in Tampa Bay in Week 7 this season. The major story was the lack of playing time for the suited up Bijan Robinson (1 total carry for 3 yards), whom we later learned was dealing with a bad headache which the team had not disclosed earlier.
The lack of Robinson did not do much to slow the Falcons, who seemingly moved the ball at will against an overmatched Bucs defense. They recorded over 400 yards of total offense, and made it inside the Bucs 5-yard-line four separate times. They were only able to punch one of those in for a touchdown, however.
Desmond Ridder lost three red zone fumbles, including two from the 1-yard-line, which kept Tampa in it despite only scoring 13 total points.
A pair of Ridder to Kyle Pitts passes helped set up a last gasp Younghoe Koo 51-yard field goal with time expiring to break a 13-13 tie and to put the Falcons ahead in the division.