ATLANTA — Many fans began leaving Mercedes-Benz Stadium before the end of Thursday night’s game, and really, who could blame them? The Falcons have burned Atlanta so many times, failing to capitalize on their promise and stomping on fans’ hopes.
So when Kirk Cousins seemed to wrap what had been an exceptional passing night against Tampa Bay by throwing a crushing interception with 1:52 remaining, well, some fans thought they knew exactly how this story was going to end.
That’s the thing about football, though — every so often, that weird ball takes a strange bounce.
Atlanta peeled off two remarkable plays — a literal last-second rush to spike the ball and set up for a field goal to force overtime, and a walk-off touchdown to maybe the unlikeliest receiver on the roster — to claim an unlikely 36-30 victory over Tampa Bay on Thursday night.