Kyle Anthony Pitts (born October 6, 2000) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni an ...

, where he was named a

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

and won the

John Mackey Award The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's most outstanding tight end. Established in 2000 by the Nassau County Sports Commission, the award is given annually to the tight end who best exemplifies the play, sportsmanship, ac ...

in 2020. Pitts was selected fourth overall by the Falcons in the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

, making him the highest drafted tight end in NFL history. He was later named to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

as a rookie.

Early life

Pitts originally attended

Abington Senior High School Abington Senior High School is a four-year co-educational high school in Abington, Pennsylvania, United States. A part of the Abington School District, the school was a two-year high school known as Abington South Campus from September 1964 u ...

Abington, Pennsylvania Abington is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, coterminous with the ZIP Code 19001. Places of interest * Jefferson Abington Hospital * Abington Senior High Scho ...

before transferring to Archbishop Wood Catholic High School in

Warminster, Pennsylvania Warminster Township, also referred to as Warminster, is located in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was formally established in 1711. The township is 13.7 miles north of Philadelphia and had a population of 33,603 according to the ...

in 2016. He played tight end and

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

on the

team. Pitts played in the 2018

Under Armour All-America Game The Under Armour High School All-America Game is a high school football all-star game typically held in early January in the United States, U.S. U.S. state, state of Florida created to spotlight the nation’s top high school seniors. The game wa ...

. He committed to the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

to play

College career

Pitts played in 11 games as a backup his true freshman season at

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in 2018. He finished the year with three receptions for 73 yards and a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. In 2019, he took over as the starting tight end. Pitts played in all 13 games his sophomore season at Florida in 2019. He finished the year with 54 receptions for 649 yards and 5 touchdowns. Pitts earned First-team

All-Southeastern Conference The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons

Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: ...

for the season. During the 2020 season, curtailed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Pitts scored 12 touchdowns in eight games while gaining 770 yards on 43 receptions. He was named a

and won the

as the most outstanding tight end in college football for the season.

College statistics

Professional career

2021 season

Pitts was selected in the first round with the fourth overall by the

in the

, making him the highest drafted tight end in NFL history. He signed his four-year rookie contract, worth $32.9 million, on June 29, 2021. Kyle Pitts TD Falcons-Jets 2021

In his NFL debut, Pitts had four receptions for 31 yards in a 6–32 loss to the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

in Week 1. In Week 2, Pitts had five catches for 79 yards in a 25–48 loss to the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

. In Week 5 against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Pitts caught nine passes for 119 yards and his first NFL touchdown in the 27–20 win. In Week 7 against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

, Pitts finished with 163 receiving yards as the Falcons won 30–28. His 163 receiving yards set the Falcons franchise record for receiving yards in a single game by a tight end. In Week 16 against the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

, Pitts had six receptions for 102 yards in the 20–16 win. In that game, Pitts surpassed

Tony Gonzalez Anthony David Gonzalez (born February 27, 1976) is an American former professional football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is the NFL's all ...

for the Falcon franchise record for the most receiving yards in a single season by a tight end. In Week 17 against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

, Pitts joined Hall of Famer

Mike Ditka Michael Keller Ditka ( ; born Michael Dyczko; October 18, 1939) is an American former professional American football, football player, coach, and television commentator. During his playing career, he was UPI NFL-NFC Rookie of the Year, UPI NFL R ...

as the only rookie tight ends in NFL history to surpass 1,000 receiving yards. Pitts finished the season with 68 receptions for 1,026 yards and a touchdown. He was named to the

2022 Pro Bowl The 2022 Pro Bowl was the National Football League all-star game for the 2021 NFL season. It was played at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, on February 6, 2022. ESPN, ABC and Disney XD had the national television rights. Voting for the game ...

, making him the first rookie at his position to make the Pro Bowl since

Jeremy Shockey Jeremy Charles Shockey (born August 18, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes, earning first-team All-American hon ...

in 2002. He was named to the 2021 PFWA All-Rookie Team. He was ranked 91st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2022.

2022 season

In Week 3 against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

, Pitts had five receptions for 87 yards in the 27–23 win. Pitts was ruled out with a hamstring injury for Week 5 against the Buccaneers. Pitts returned from injury in Week 6 against the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

and had his first touchdown of the season. In Week 10 against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

, Pitts had 5 receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown in the 37–34 overtime win. In Week 11 against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

, Pitts suffered a knee injury in the second half. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

the following day for a torn MCL. On November 30, 2022, Pitts was ruled out for the remainder of the season after having surgery to repair the MCL in his right knee. Pitts finished the season with 28 receptions for 356 yards and two touchdowns.

2023 season

In the 2023 season, Pitts had 53 receptions for 667 yards and three touchdowns.

2024 season

On April 29, 2024, the Falcons picked up the fifth-year option on Pitts' contract. In the 2024 season, Pitts had 47 receptions for 602 yards and four touchdowns.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

*
Atlanta Falcons bioFlorida Gators bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitts, Kyle 2000 births Living people All-American college football players American football tight ends Atlanta Falcons players Florida Gators football players National Conference Pro Bowl players Sportspeople from Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Philadelphia Players of American football from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania