Could This Former First-Round Atlanta Falcon Be Traded?

The countdown to kickoff is nearly over, and the Atlanta Falcons are set to open the 2025 season against the defending NFC South champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 7 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. 

As the Falcons prepare for Week 1, ESPN’s Dan Graziano is predicting a surprising storyline: Atlanta could look to trade former first-round pick before the season ends.

According to Graziano, “the idea is to collect some of the information I've been gathering around the league throughout training camp and present a potential surprise that may or may not have been on your radar as a fan. We hit potential stat leaders, under-the-radar teams, award candidates, sleeper players to watch, and position groups that might look better (or worse) than expected.”

Some of his predictions were admittedly more ‘surprising’ than others, but for the Falcons, he predicted that they could be in the market to trade tight end Kyle Pitts. 

“Part of this is what I'm seeing -- or rather not seeing. Pitts is in the final year of his contract, playing for $10.878 million on the fifth-year option from his rookie deal. The Falcons have made no move to extend him beyond this season. The fourth pick of the 2021 draft has averaged 49 catches per season and caught a total of 10 touchdown passes in his four-year career while struggling to consistently stay healthy.”

“When No. 2 receiver Darnell Mooney went down with an injury early in training camp, there was a lot of talk about Atlanta filling that void by playing two-tight end sets and basically using Pitts as a receiver. And the Falcons absolutely might still try that. But there are definitely signs that they don't view Pitts as a great fit for what they're trying to do on offense. Mooney's training camp absence gave some of the younger receivers on the roster a chance to show what they can do, and if one or more of them has emerged as a reliable contributor by the time the trade deadline rolls around, don't be shocked if Pitts is on the move.” 

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The former No. 4 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft has been on a bit of a roller coaster during his tenure with the Falcons. He was projected to be a ‘unicorn’ type of player who would reset expectations for what an NFL tight end could be. 

To that end, he has far from lived up to expectations. He has one 1,000-yard season (2,651 total receiving yards), which he picked up as a rookie, and just 10 career touchdowns over his four seasons. 

A trade would likely be made due to his still sky-high potential rather than his production, but it would be hard to predict what the team could recoup if they were interested in a deal. 

“When we are talking about guys showing up in great shape and showing up in the right way, Kyle did the same thing,” Terry Fontenot said about his tight end. “We're managing him in the offseason the right way, and in the summer, those guys really did a lot of work together. He showed up in great shape and with his mentality — so just continuing to build chemistry with Mike (Penix) and with his teammates, we love where Kyle is right now."

For now, Pitts now enters the final year of his rookie contract in Atlanta, but his role and his future in this offense are not totally clear, and Fontenot’s comments don’t provide much for us either. 

For now, Pitts enters the final year of his rookie contract with plenty to prove. Once viewed as a franchise-changing talent, he’s now fighting questions about his fit in the Falcons’ offense, and whether he’ll even finish the season in Atlanta. His performance this fall won’t just determine the Falcons’ passing game – it could decide where he plays his next contract.