ATLANTA — Kirk Cousins certainly earned all that money Thursday night.
The $180 million quarterback rushed for a career-high 509 yards and four touchdowns, the last of which was a 45-yard scoring pass to KhaDarel Hodge in overtime that helped the Atlanta Falcons beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by 36. -30, resulting in an impossible victory.
“What a night it was,” Cousins said. “tired.”
After an eventful fourth quarter that included a blocked field goal, a fumble, and an interception, Cousins and the Falcons (3-2) got the ball back at their own 20 with 1:14 left in regulation, 30-27 with no timeouts. he led. .
Cousins completed five passes to drive Atlanta to the Buccaneers' 29, then ran to the line and spiked the ball with one second left. In the chaos, the Falcons were called for a delay to start the game in hopes of tying the game, but they didn't fall victim.
A week after Yonghoe Koo beat the New Orleans Saints with a 58-yard run with two seconds left, he scored from 52 yards left to send the game into overtime.
“I’m proud of that grit,” Cousins said. “That's what you need in this league. We were rough tonight.”
The Falcons (3-2) won the overtime coin toss, keeping Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers (3-2) from touching the ball again.
Cousins connected with Drake Rondon on a few passes and threw a short pass to Hodge. Hodge broke a tackle in the 40th minute, cut through a gap in the secondary and raced straight into the end zone to end the game.
The four TD passes matched Cousins' career best, and his air yards easily surpassed his previous record of 460, set in 2022 with the Minnesota Vikings.
“The players played hard,'' coach Raheem Morris said. “They played until the end.”
After signing a big free agent contract with the Falcons that included $100 million in guaranteed money, Cousins got off to a slow start in Atlanta.
But on the night the Falcons inducted longtime starting quarterback Matt Ryan into the Ring of Honor, all he heard was cheers. Cousins solidified his ability in ATL by swaying to the rap hit song “Swag Surfing” during the post-game celebration.
Mayfield threw three touchdown passes, including a pair to Mike Evans, and Chase McLaughlin made three field goals. His last shot was a 53-yard shot with 10:23 left to put the Buccaneers ahead 30-27.
Mayfield felt like he missed this.
“All I care about is winning,” he said. “We have to find a way to finish games offensively.”
The Falcons tied the game early in the fourth quarter with a bold fourth-down call by Morris.
After Tyler Allgaier lost 2 yards on third-and-2, the Falcons didn't even consider a field goal from the Bucs 12.
Atlanta quickly responded, with Cousins throwing a pass to Darnell Mooney, who made the grab right near his marker, but wasn't satisfied with just a first down.
He brushed off the tackler and scooted into the end zone.
Mooney also had a 24-yard touchdown catch during an eventful first half that ended with the Buccaneers leading 24-17.
Both offenses ran up and down the field over the first two quarters, gaining a combined 488 yards, 28 first downs and one punt.
Cousins had an 18-yard touchdown pass to London, who finished with 154 yards on 12 catches. Mooney had 9 of 105 receptions.
“I spread it around and the guys made plays,” Cousins said. “I'm grateful for our progress. We're getting better and better each week.”
Gu missed his first field goal of the year from 41 yards, but connected from 54 and 48 yards and cracked the uprights with the game-tying kick.
