The Atlanta Falcons were down three points, with less than two minutes left and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in possession of the ball. You’ll never guess what happened next.
After a furious drive to send the game to OT, the Falcons stunned their NFC South foes on a 45-yard KhaDarel Hodge touchdown to win 36-30. The biggest star of the night: Kirk Cousins, who shook off a slow start to his Falcons tenure with one of the biggest nights of his career.
The former Minnesota Vikings starter finished 42-of-58 for 509 passing yards, four touchdowns and an interception. He picked the Bucs apart in the drive to force OT, then hammered them again after the Falcons won the second coin toss.
The Falcons’ comeback erased an excellent night for Baker Mayfield, who was 19-of-24 for 180 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. The Tampa Bay run game also combined for 160 yards on 26 attempts. But some late missteps spelled doom for a team that no longer leads the NFC South.
Here’s how it all played out on Yahoo Sports.
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Kirk Cousins: 42-of-58 for 509 yards, four touchdowns and a pick, plus a game-tying drive with a minute left and no timeouts then the game-winning drive. It’s been a rough start for him, but he made a statement tonight.
TOUCHDOWN: Falcons stun the Bucs in OT
KhaDarel Hodge breaks a tackle and finds an opening the Tampa Bay defense to steal a win. What an ending, what a game.
Uh oh. Drake London made a big catch on third down, but he’s still down after taking a big hit. He was evaluated for a concussion earlier this game.
He’s at 154 yards now, but that may be it.
Falcons win the toss to open OT and can win it here.
The Falcons get called for delay of game, pushing Koo’s attempt to 52 yards. He makes it.
To overtime we go.
Another pass to London gains 15 yards and Kirk Cousins spikes the ball with one second left. In comes Younghoe Koo to force OT.
The Falcons are in Tampa Bay territory…
The Falcons get the stop and the ball back, but burn through three timeouts. They’ll take over on their own 20 with 1:14 left and three points to score.
INTERCEPTION: Bucs get the pick on 4th-and-15
The Falcons do go for it and… Kirk Cousins throws a pick to Lavonte David. Atlanta still has three timeouts, but the Bucs are sitting pretty here.
We’ve reached the two-minute warning, with the Falcons facing a 4th-and-15 and 80 yards from the end zone. Do they go for it?
TURNOVER: Falcons recover a Bucky Irving fumble
Just as it was looking bleak, Jessie Bates punches the ball out of Bucs rookie Bucky Irving’s hands and the Falcons recover it. The Falcons get the ball back in their territory with 2:50 left and down by three.
This can’t happen in this situation.
Oh, that was a brutal drop from Darnell Mooney. Kirk Cousins throws him wide open on 3rd-and-6 and he just whiffs on the catch. And now the Falcons’ 54-yard field goal attempt is blocked.
Drake London is up to eight catches on nine targets for a season-high 110 yards and a touchdown.
Kirk Cousins’ third down pass intended for Mooney falls incomplete. Bucs defender got there too early though. That’s DPI. New life for the Falcons.
FIELD GOAL: Chase McLaughlin good from 53 to give Bucs the lead
The Bucs are on top again as McLaughlin remains automatic. Now to see how the Falcons respond.
4th-down risk pays off with a Falcons TD
Falcons were running the ball well, but stalled out at the Tampa Bay 12 after Tyler Allgeier was tackled for a 2-yard loss.
But Atlanta decides to go for it on 4th-and-4 and Kirk Cousins hits Darnell Mooney for a 12-yard touchdown pass. Mooney had the first down, but then turned to shake off Tykee Smith and got to the end zone.
We are tied 27–27.
Tampa Bay 27, Atlanta 20 after 3 quarters
The Falcons finish off the 3rd quarter strong with a 22-yard catch and run by Ray Ray McCloud, followed by a 29-yard dash by Bijan Robinson.
Atlanta is at the Tampa Bay 46-yard line as the fourth quarter begins.
FIELD GOAL: Buccaneers respond with their own FG, but Baker Mayfield may be hurt
The Buccaneers have had little trouble moving the ball tonight. They respond to the Falcons FG with a nine-play, 56-yard drive, but finish short of another TD. Baker Mayfield also limped off the field after taking a third-down sack.
Waves from Hurricane Kirk could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions this weekend along the U.S. East Coast as well as in Bermuda, the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas, forecasters said.
Kirk was a Category 4 storm in the Atlantic Ocean and could strengthen further, but was expected to remain away from land, the Miami-based U.S. National Hurricane Center said Thursday. But forecasters warned that “large swells” could reach the East Coast by Sunday.
Swells generated by Kirk were expected to reach portions of the Leeward Islands on Friday and Bermuda and the Greater Antilles on Saturday, the center said.
A satellite image of Hurricane Kirk in the Atlantic at 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Oct. 3, 2024.
NOAA/NESDIS/STAR GOES-East
There were no coastal watches or warnings in effect. The major hurricane was about 1,040 miles east-northeast of the Leeward Islands with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph as of late Thursday night.
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Leslie formed late Wednesday in the eastern Atlantic and could strengthen into a hurricane in the coming days, forecasters said. It also was not yet deemed a threat to land.
The storm was located about 610 miles west-southwest of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands and had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph, the center said.
The storms formed as many people in the U.S. Southeast still lacked running water, cellphone service and electricity as rescuers searched for people unaccounted for after Hurricane Helene struck last week and left a trail of death and catastrophic damage.
More than 200 people were confirmed dead across multiple states Thursday in one of the deadliest storms in U.S. history, according to a tally by CBS News.
President Biden went to Florida and Georgia Thursday to survey the widespread damage from the storm.
The trip is the president’s second consecutive day viewing hurricane damage in the Southeast. He visited the Carolinas on Wednesday, surveying the flood damage from Greenville, South Carolina, to Asheville, North Carolina, by air, and receiving emergency response updates from officials in Raleigh.
The president announced the federal government will cover “100%” of all debris removal and emergency protective measure costs in North Carolina for six months, and will do the same for Florida and Georgia for the next 90 days.
This is the 7th hurricane of the season but won’t have any impact on the U.S.
Updated: 4:16 PM CDT Oct 1, 2024
THE TROPICS, WE ARE FAR FROM OVER RIGHT NOW. RAYVEN. YEAH, WE ARE. SO THE PEAK OF THE SEASON WAS SEPTEMBER 10TH, AND HERE WE ARE INTO OCTOBER. WE STILL HAVE THINGS TO TALK ABOUT. KIRK. NOT GOING TO IMPACT US. THAT’S GOING TO BECOME A MAJOR HURRICANE. SO WE DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THAT ONE. THEN THERE IS AN AREA OF INTEREST. NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER WATCHING JUST OFF THE COAST OF AFRICA. THAT’S VERY FAR AWAY AS OF RIGHT NOW. SO WE’LL JUST FOCUS ON THE ONE A LITTLE CLOSER TO HOME FOR US. AND SO THIS ONE GOING TO BE IN THE CARIBBEAN, PORTIONS OF THE GULF OF MEXICO, LOOKING AT A 40% CHANCE OF DEVELOPMENT HERE OVER THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS. OVER THE WEEKEND, IT WAS AT A 50% CHANCE. SO THINGS HAVE STARTED TO CHANGE. SO LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE MODELS. WHAT ARE THEY SHOWING. BUT WE’RE LOOKING AT A LOT OF RAIN. THAT IS FOR SURE. AS OF RIGHT NOW. STILL NOT SEEING ANY DEVELOPMENT. THAT’S THURSDAY. SO THURSDAY WE’RE GOING TO GET SOME RAIN. HERE’S FRIDAY. WE’RE ALSO GOING TO GET SOME RAIN. STILL NOT REALLY LOOKING AT ANYTHING DEVELOPING, JUST SEEING A LOT OF MOISTURE. AND THEN AS WE GET INTO SATURDAY STILL FAIRLY NOT ANYTHING REALLY, BUT WE WILL TRY TO SEE SOMETHING DEVELOP. BUT AS OF RIGHT NOW DOES LOOK LIKE IT MAY BE ON THE WEAKER SIDE. SO WE COULD BE TALKING ABOUT A TROPICAL DEPRESSION, COULD BE TALKING ABOUT MAYBE A LOT OF RAIN OR MAYBE EVEN COULD TALK ABOUT A STORM. AND THEN BY THE TIME WE GET TO NEXT WEEK, IT DOES LOOK LIKE IT STARTS TO DRY OUT FOR US. HERE’S ANOTHER MODEL ALSO SHOWING THAT THE GULF OF MEXICO GOING TO BE FULL OF RAIN. WE’RE GOING TO SEE RAIN ON THURSDAY. THEN WE’VE GOT ANOTHER CHANCE FOR RAIN ON OUR FRIDAY AND THEN ON INTO SATURDAY AS WELL. MAYBE TRYING TO SEE A COUPLE AREAS OF LOW PRESSURE, TRY TO DEVELOP AND THEN KIND OF MOVES ON OFF BUT DOESN’T REALLY HOLD TOGETHER VERY WELL. MAYBE ANOTHER AREA, A COUPLE AREAS TRYING TO POP UP AS WELL. BUT OF COURSE THIS IS CONTINUING TO CHANGE. WE’LL KEEP YOU UPDATED ON THAT. BUT AS OF RIGHT NOW DOES LOOK LIKE THINGS ARE GOING TO BE ON THE WEAKER SIDE. IF SOMETHING WERE TO DEVELOP. BUT JUST KNOW IT’S ABSOLUTELY GOING TO RAIN NOW, HOW MUCH IS IT GOING TO RAIN AND JUST HOW MUCH IS IT GOING TO RAIN FOR YOUR WEEKEND. THAT ALL DEPENDS ON THE DEVELOPMENT. WHAT HAPPENS, WHERE IT DEVELOPS. SO STILL VERY EARLY, STILL UP IN THE AIR AS OF RIGHT NOW. JUST KNOW WE’RE WATCHING IT FOR YOU. WE’RE KEEPING YOU UPDATED. SO GETTING INTO THE WEEKEND, YES YOU WILL GET SOME CHANCES FOR RAIN. AND AS I MENTIONED JUST DEPENDS ON WHERE THIS THING GOES. HOW MUCH WE COULD SEE COULD STAY TO THE SOUTH OF US. AND THAT MEANS SOME OF THE MOISTURE WILL STAY OFFSHORE. BUT GETTING INTO NEXT WEEK, A LOT OF US WILL STAY ON THE DRIER SIDE. HOW MUCH RAIN? LOOKING AT AN INCH TO LESS ON THE NORTH SHORE AND THEN ON THE SOUTH SHORE, 2 INCH TO 3IN. SO NOT THE LARGEST AMOUNTS OF RAIN THAT WE’VE SEEN, BUT IT WILL BE SOME RAIN TODAY THOUGH, WE’RE GOING TO STAY ON THE DRY SIDE, SO NOT WORRIED ABOUT THAT. YOUR DEW POINTS AND YOU STEP OUTSIDE. IT’S NOT THE MUGGY AND IT’S NOT THE DRIEST, BUT I WOULD SAY IT’S DECENT FOR US. WE’LL START TO GO UP. OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE WE’RE GOING TO SEE SOME RAIN. THEN AFTER THAT DROP BACK DOWN, JUST EVER SO SLIGHTLY THIS MORNING THOUGH, YOU’RE INTO THE MID 60S ON THE NORTH SHORE, LOOKING AT THE UPPER 60S AND SOME LOWER 70S ON THE SOUTH SHORE, A LITTLE BIT WARMER ALONG THE COAST. AND THEN AS YOU HEAD THROUGHOUT THE REST OF THE DAY, UPPER 80S, FEELING LIKE THE LOWER 90S. SO NOT A HUGE DIFFERENCE WITH YOUR TEMPERATURES. AND THAT’S STILL A GOOD THING FOR US. IT’S NOT GOING TO BE LIKE OVERLY OPPRESSIVELY HOT. HERE’S A LOOK AT THE REST OF YOUR FORECAST. STILL GOING TO BE HOT FOR WEDNESDAY. AND THEN GETTING INTO THURSDAY. DROPPING T
Hurricane Kirk forms in the Atlantic
This is the 7th hurricane of the season but won’t have any impact on the U.S.
Updated: 4:16 PM CDT Oct 1, 2024
Hurricane Kirk formed in the Atlantic on Tuesday. This storm is located about 1070 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands and is expected to become a major hurricane by Thursday The storm is expected to take on a more northwest track by Wednesday staying in the open waters with no chance of having any impact on U.S. soil. Kirk is the seventh hurricane of the season so far.
Hurricane Kirk formed in the Atlantic on Tuesday. This storm is located about 1070 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands and is expected to become a major hurricane by Thursday
The storm is expected to take on a more northwest track by Wednesday staying in the open waters with no chance of having any impact on U.S. soil.
Kirk is the seventh hurricane of the season so far.
Another tropical storm formed in the Atlantic Monday and was expected to become a major hurricane later this week, forecasters said.
Tropical Storm Kirk had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph as it moved west over 800 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
There were no coastal watches or warnings in effect and Kirk was forecast to stay in the open waters of the Atlantic at this time.
Kirk was forecast to become a major hurricane as it tracks northwest over the next week but was not expected to bring threats to South Florida.
Meanwhile, Joyce barely remained a tropical depression on Monday as it headed north far out over the Atlantic.
National Hurricane Center
A look at the Atlantic on Sept. 30, 2024.
To the north, what was Tropical Storm Isaac was moving into the high latitudes of the North Atlantic and losing its tropical characteristics, becoming a post-tropical cyclone.
To the east of Kirk was another disturbance that had an 80% chance of formation over the next week, and could become a tropical depression over the next few days while it moves slowly westward over the eastern tropical Atlantic.
Another area being monitored was in the western Caribbean Sea that had a 40% chance of development over the next week, possibly while the system is in the southern Gulf of Mexico.
Kirk is the 11th named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. If it becomes a major hurricane, it would be the third of the season, following Beryl and Helene.
