After reports surfaced that multiple NFL teams have reached out to the Atlanta Falcons about the possibility of acquiring tight end Kyle Pitts's services, ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler provided an update on where both parties stand Saturday.
On Friday, Jordan Schultz reported that the Falcons prefer to keep Pitts and it would take at least a second or third-round pick for Atlanta to seriously consider trading their young tight end. Fowler's new reporting Saturday mentioned that other teams think both team and player may be open to a potential deal.
"I don't think it's a situation where [the Falcons] are aggressively shopping [Pitts]," Fowler said Saturday on ESPN's SportsCenter. "But it appears, talking to some other teams, they think Atlanta is at least open to the possibility and Pitts might be as well. I'm told he loves Atlanta, this is not a situation where he's requesting a trade, but if he has a chance to go to maybe a better offense where he's more featured—he's sort of the third or fourth wheel right now in Atlanta—it could be something that he's open to."
Pitts, 24, will enter his fifth NFL season in 2025. After an impressive rookie season when he became the second rookie tight end in NFL history to record 1,000 receiving yards, he hasn't quite lived up to the billing of the No. 4 pick in the 2021 NFL draft. He has 1,625 receiving yards over the past three seasons combined, not coming close to his rookie-year total in any year. Last year, he had 602 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 47 receptions.
The Falcons have been criticized over Pitts' first four seasons for not utilizing him optimally in the team's receiving game, but offensive coordinator Zac Robinson said earlier this month that he expects Pitts to take a "big jump" in 2025. If that jump comes to fruition, there's a chance it could be away from Atlanta.
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