Kyle Pitts reacts to Falcons picking up his fifth-year option

When the Atlanta Falcons selected Kyle Pitts out of Florida at No. 4 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, they figured he'd be the one to take their offense from good to great. 

But between coaching, injuries and bad quarterback play, Pitts has been held back from his full potential. 

Now healthy again and under new head coach Raheem Morris and quarterback Kirk Cousins, there's belief that Pitts' best years are ahead of him as he enters his fourth NFL season. 

And that's why the Falcons picked up Pitts' fifth-year option last month, which he couldn't feel more grateful about. 

"Definitely it's a blessing for the upstairs to still have faith in me," Pitts told reporters, via the team's website. "I'll try to show them I can do something different this year."

Pitts spent his rookie season with Matt Ryan where he earned a Pro Bowl after hauling in 68 receptions for 1,026 yards and a touchdown.

The following year, Pitts was teamed up with Marcus Mariota and was limited to 10 games after he suffered an MCL tear. He reeled in 28 receptions for 356 yards and two touchdowns before undergoing season-ending surgery. 

Most recently, Pitts not only battled through his injury recovery in 2023, but also bad quarterback play from Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke. He still managed to catch 53 passes for 667 yards and three touchdowns. 

In 2024, Pitts will be back to catching passes from an experienced veteran quarterback in Cousins and he feels like he's re-living his first NFL season -- in the best way. 

"I would say I'm a super rookie," Pitts said. "I'm not a rookie rookie. But we're all in this new offense, new regime, new schedule. We're all in this fresh."

Coach Morris knows the sky is the the limit for Pitts and can't wait to see what's to come for the dual-threat tight end in 2024. 

“If we can get this guy going, we all know what he could be,” Morris told reporters during rookie minicamp. “That’s the job of the coach, to find out what a player can be and go get the best out of him. Hopefully, myself, along with my staff, and all of our coaches, we can go and get the best version of Kyle Pitts because that will be really good for all of us.”