VIDEO: Atlanta Falcons mascot Freddie the Falcon wipes out Tampa Bay Buccaneers pitch invader

Fan ran onto the pitch during the 56-14 victory for the Falcons, where Freddie swooped to take out the invader before allowing security to take him away

Freddie the Falcon dances with the Atlanta Falcons cheerleaders (Getty Images)

It’s fair to say that pitch invading never ends well. You’ll either be wrestled to the ground by security, run out of breath after evading your pursuers that you give up the ghost anyway, or get taken out by one of the players who are less than impressed with your ill-timed interruption.

But one such chancer suffered the embarrassment of being taken out in the most unusual of circumstances. Was it a bird? Was it a plane? No, it was Freddie the Falcon, the mascot for NFL side the Atlanta Falcons.

What made it even funnier was that the invader appeared to be dressed up as a pirate in support of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, although he was more Captain Pugwash than Long John Silver.

It didn’t get any less painful for the Bucs, as they succumbed to a heavy 56-14 defeat at the Georgia Dome, home of the Falcons, in what was one of their biggest victories in the franchises’ history.

Watch the video below...

The mere consolation for the 0-3 Buccaneers was that they scored a late touchdown through Danny Lansanah's 27-yard interception return meaning they would not eclipse their worst ever defeat which came in the 48-3 blowout by the San Francisco 49ers in 2011.