The tight end has been intermittent due to injuries, but wants to be well to show how excellent he can be
ATLANTA — Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts has played with four quarterbacks in these three NFL seasons. Matt Ryan in 2021, Pitts’ record rookie year. Since then, it’s been a revolving door for Marcus Mariota, Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke.
That’s not where the inconsistency ends either. Pitts, who has shown the potential to be one of the NFL’s best tight ends, suffered a hamstring injury in 2022 and then that season was cut short due to a torn MCL. The University of Florida product also didn’t look completely healthy in 2023, and he didn’t come close to the promise of why the Falcons made him the top tight end taken in the 2021 NFL draft (No. 4 overall).
Atlanta signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract this offseason with the hopes of him being the team’s quarterback for the foreseeable future. Cousins has been a consistent and productive quarterback in the NFL for a decade, which gives hope for the Falcons and Pitts.
But it also means another system to learn. Atlanta fired coach Arthur Smith after the season and hired Raheem Morris, who brought in Zac Robinson from the Los Angeles Rams to be the offensive coordinator.
“I would say I’m a super rookie,” Kyle Pitts recently joked in the Falcons’ OTAs. “You know, I’m not a ‘freshman rookie,’ but we’re all in this new offense, new regime, new schedule. So we’re all fresh. But learning a new offense is always fun.”
Kyle Pitts said the most important things to get along with a new quarterback are “relationship, communication and being his security blanket.” Cousins has already mentioned that one of his favorite things so far in Atlanta has been running a route to Pitts during OTAs. Cousins took Pitts and wide receivers Drake London and Darnell Mooney on a field trip to Tampa before OTAs began watching film with former NFL coach Jon Gruden.
There, Pitts noted that he watched tape of several old-school tight ends and learned who the father of the “pick” concept was: legendary wide receiver Art Monk.
Kyle Pitts wanted to learn: “Just different tight ends and different philosophies and different things to take into account every day to help me be the best I can be and do everything I can to contribute to the offense.”
Last month, the Falcons obtained a fifth-year extension to Pitts’ rookie contract, giving him a vote of confidence heading into his fourth year in the league. The hope is that Pitts can return to his form from his rookie season.
In 2021, Pitts had 68 receptions for 1,026 yards and a touchdown. He and Mike Ditka are the only rookie tight ends to eclipse the 1,000 receiving yards mark in NFL history. Pitts was the first player at the position to make the Pro Bowl as a freshman since Jeremy Shockey in 2002.
Robinson said he’s excited about “everything” Pitts brings to the table, including his potential as a blocker. Robinson noted that Pitts wants to be a complete tight end and he has said that from the beginning. And there are also plans to use it as a receiver.
“He’s basically learning two different positions, because there’s some tight end [trabajo] and some receiver, so he’s got a lot on his plate and he’s handled it very well,” Robinson said. “And so, I’m excited to see him continue to get more comfortable in the system. And the sky is the limit for what kind of season he can have.”
Pitts said it feels “amazing” to be “1,000%” healthy after the last few years. Morris commented that it has been “fun for me to personally coach Pitts.”
“I see a young man who is eager to learn, wants more, and his ‘why’ is really him: his personal vendetta in coming back,” Morris said. “And I love that about him, because you have to go to the limit a little bit, and he’s starting to show that a little more every day. And the better we can get him, to prepare him to go to training camp, I think the better the team will be. “I think our city will be better. I think everything will be better.”
