Falcon Report

Falcons Fans Blast Kyle Pitts After Dropped Pass Leads to INT

Atlanta Falcons fans ripped into former No. 4 overall pick Kyle Pitts after he dropped a pass that led to an interception and failed to show much effort to tackle the Giants defender.

Dave Holcomb

Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts
Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
In this story:

There wasn't a lot to dislike about the Atlanta Falcons' 34-7 victory against the New York Giants in Week 16. But tight end Kyle Pitts made sure there was something.

Pitts was largely responsible for the lone blemish on Michael Penix Jr.'s stat sheet in his first NFL regular season start. Penix targeted Pitts with an accurate pass inside the 5-yard line late in the first half. But Pitts was unable to corral the throw and proceeded to tip the ball to a defender for an interception.

If that wasn't bad enough, the replay revealed Pitts didn't give much effort on the Giants interception return.

Falcons fans and pundits on social media ripped into Pitts for the poor play and effort.

Pitts only received 2 targets from Penix in his debut. Meanwhile, receivers Drake London and Darnell Mooney each had 8 and 6 targets, respectively. Fellow veteran wideout Ray-Ray McCloud had 4 targets.

Based on that distribution, it might not be a stretch to say Penix preferred to target other receivers besides Pitts after the mistake near the goal line.

Tipping the pass to a defender is one thing. But even Pitts' biggest defenders seemed not to have his back anymore after his effort on the interception return.

There was also a scrum after the tackle on the Giants interception return. Pitts, though, didn't seem very interested in engaging in the pile of players until it became absolutely necessary.

That caused Falcons pundits to flat out call Pitts a quiter.

Pitts posted 68 catches with 1,026 receiving yards in 2021 as a rookie. Those were impressive receiving numbers for a first-year tight end.

His statistics were down the past two years, but Falcons fans and pundits used injuries and inconsistent quarterback play as excuses for Pitts. But Pitts doesn't appear to be getting a pass anymore at the end of his fourth year.

In 15 games this season, Pitts has registered 41 catches with 542 receiving yards with 3 touchdowns.

Pitts, though, will very likely be back with the Falcons next season. The team already elected in May to pick up the fifth year of his rookie contract.

Published
Dave Holcomb
DAVE HOLCOMB

Dave is a staff writer at Falcon Report. He also writes at Yardbarker, Southern Pigskin, Cox Media, and Rotowire. Follow him on Twitter @dmholcomb.