ATLANTA – In the end, the lasting image will be cornerback Zyon McCollum missing a tackle from Falcons receiver KhaDarel Hodge, who took a short pass from Kirk Cousins ​​45 yards into the end zone and three plays into overtime for the winning touchdown cared.

But many players let the Bucs miss Thursday night's game.

There were so many fingerprints in the 36-30 loss to the Falcons.

Most of them belonged to the defense, which was torched by Cousins, who rushed for 509 yards and four touchdowns.

Despite being overshadowed, Baker Mayfield had a good night, passing for 180 yards and three touchdowns, while the Bucs rushed for 160 yards, including Rachaad White's 56-yard run.

The Bucs took a 30-27 lead with 10:23 left in the game on Chase McLaughlin's 53-yard field goal.

Around this time, the video board at Mercedes-Benz Stadium showed rapper/actor Ludacris in the seats. And the end of this game was ridiculous.

How many ways did the Bucs give this one away?

Let's roll up the tape.

The Bucs led four times and blew them all.

With 6:29 to play, Tavierre Thomas blocked Younghoe Koo's 54-yard field goal attempt and the Bucs took over at their own 44-yard line.

They converted a first down before rookie running back Bucky Irving took the ball away from Falcons safety Jessie Bates and linebacker Kaden Elliss recovered at the Atlanta 25.

“It happens,” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said. “He fumbled and we have to play defense. He will be a part of the game. He is one of our better players. We give him the ball every time and hope he progresses. In this case, he fumbled the ball and the defense has to hold on to it. It’s a team effort.”

But wait.

After the two-minute warning, the Falcons tried to catch their breath again on fourth-and-15 and Lavonte David appeared to seal the game with his interception at the Atlanta 28.

A holding penalty on rookie center Graham Barton helped put the Bucs out of field goal range, and Atlanta burned its timeouts.

You'd think a good punt from Trenton Gill would push the Falcons back and make a comeback nearly impossible. But wait. Gill hit the ball through the end zone for a touchback.

Cousins ​​went to work, completing six passes against the Bucs' porous defense to advance the ball to the Tampa Bay 29-yard line, where he spiked the ball with one second left. A delay of game penalty against the Falcons moved the ball back 5 yards and forced Koo to make a 52-yard field goal to tie the score in regulation and send it to overtime.

Did David think his choice ensured victory?

“The game is never over,” David said. “When the clock is running, it is never over. We had the chance to finish the game defensively and didn't do it.

“They played more games than us. You have to make plays.”

One play the Falcons made was to win the coin toss in overtime. They took the ball, the game and the soul of the Bucs.

You just knew what would happen next. The defense, which would give up a whopping 550 yards of offense, stood no chance.

Cousins ​​only needed four plays to get the Falcons into the end zone.

After briefly complementing running back Tyler Allgeier, he connected with receiver Drake London for 6 and 18 yards at the Tampa Bay 45.

You could say the Bucs offense didn't really get going in the second half. Shooting field goals is not the way to eliminate a team.

“They made some adjustments, but we also missed a lot of plays,” Bowles said.

This one will burn for a while. The Bucs have to live with the terrible feeling of giving away a game for another 10 days.

They could have been 4-1, and now they're tied with the Falcons at 3-2 in their next game in New Orleans.

Remember, a year ago the Bucs started 3-1 and then lost six of their next seven games.

Nothing will be easy. The first task will be to get some players back, especially in defense. They need Calijah Kancey to partner Vita Vea, who was released again on Thursday. They need Logan Hall, who had two sacks against Atlanta, to continue producing. They really need All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. to stop the bleeding in the secondary.

The image of that final play, in which Hodge broke the tackle, raced into the end zone and was moved by the entire Falcons team, will be hard to erase.

“When I go for the ball like that, I either have to make the play or put myself in position to make the tackle,” McCollum said. “So this is my fault.

“It was an emotional last four minutes for sure. But this is the NFL. This is this game and we have to finish it.”

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