Former Florida Gators TE Kyle Pitts with New Lease on Life

Former Florida Gators tight end Kyle Pitts looks to live up to his lofty draft status with a new quarterback and new coach.

Former Florida Gators tight end Kyle Pitts / Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Falcons made former Florida Gators tight end Kyle Pitts the highest selected player at his position in NFL history when they took him No. 4 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Pitts had 43 catches for 770 yards and 12 touchdowns in just eight games as a 20-year old junior at Florida in 2020. He then went to put on a show at his pro day, enticing the Falcons to select Pitts as their long-term Julio Jones replacement.

The rollercoaster ride that's summarized Pitts's first three seasons with the Atlanta Falcons has officially been cleared for two more.

Atlanta picked up Pitts's fifth-year option on his rookie contract April 29, keeping the still-just 23-year-old tight end under contract through the 2025 season.

Now, the question surrounding Pitts isn't whether he'll be a Falcon beyond 2024 - it's which version of him shows up: the player who posted the second-most receiving yards by a rookie tight end in league history in 2021 or the injury-riddled pass catcher who has fewer yards the past two years combined than in his debut campaign?

Falcons head coach Raheem Morris, hired Jan. 25 to replace Arthur Smith, anticipates seeing the 2021 form of Pitts reemerge this fall.

“He’s really excited about being healthy and so are we,” Morris said. “Getting a healthy Kyle Pitts back gives you a really dynamic player that we believe in a lot since picking up his option in order to let him be a part of our immediate and hopefully long-term future.”

Pitts had a steady 2023 season, catching 53 passes for 667 yards and three touchdowns across 17 games, but he was never quite full strength, still battling the effects of an offseason spent rehabbing and revamping after having surgery on his MCL and PCL during the 2022 season.

Morris has been optimistic about Pitts' impact since taking the job, dubbing the Philadelphia native as 'the Mayor of Atlanta' at the league owners meetings in late March.

Another critical component to Pitts's profile is quarterback play; during his decorated rookie season, he played alongside Matt Ryan, the franchise's all-time leading passer. The Falcons traded Ryan in the spring of 2022, and two years of quarterback instability followed - as did a decline in Pitts's productivity.

Atlanta signed veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract in free agency believing he'd be a multiplier, elevating the young core of playmakers around him.

Pitts was among the biggest internal proponents of the Falcons making such a move - he started recruiting weeks before free agency began, calling Cousins while the four-time Pro Bowler was on vacation at Disney World.

While much of the discussion surrounding Atlanta's quarterbacks has been about the first-round selection of Cousins's presumed successor, Michael Penix Jr., the Falcons remain committed to rolling with Cousins for at least the next two seasons.

And with that, success will come for Pitts, Morris believes - which may unlock a new element in Atlanta's offense.

“If we can get this guy going, we all know what he could be,” Morris said. “And that’s the job of a coach, to find out what a player can be and then go get the best out of him. Hopefully, myself, my staff and all of our coaches, we can go get the best of Kyle Pitts because that would be really good for all of us.”

After exercising Pitts's option, the Falcons know they have at least two years to get him going - but they're expecting success to come much earlier than that.

And with a full-strength offseason and veteran quarterback in the fold, it just might come Week 1.