Kyle Pitts misses Falcons practice again, Feleipe Franks season?

Soft tissue injuries can be tricky, especially for a skill position that relies on explosiveness. Pitts missed Wednesday’s practice, and as Michael Rothstein reports, he once again missed Thursday.

Pitts is off to a painfully slow start to the 2021 season — 10 catches for 150 yards through the first four weeks. To make matters worse, he recorded five of those catches and 87 yards in one game.

The Falcons currently have Parker Hesse, Anthony Firkser, and Feleipe Franks as the other tight ends on the roster. But none are even close to the pass catcher that Pitts is when healthy. Athletically, Franks is the closest comparison.

Despite being on the active roster for every game this season, the former quarterback has logged just 11 snaps, but that could change this week. The Falcons staff has kept Franks on the roster for a reason; they genuinely believe he can help this team. Whether that comes to fruition is another situation entirely. He’s certainly athletic enough to play tight end in this league. Can he block, run routes, catch passes, and all the other things tight ends are required to do in this offense? That has yet to be determined.

Pitts’ injury could be detrimental to the Falcons’ momentum. Atlanta has won two straight games and sits atop the NFC South, tied with the Buccaneers. But the offense just lost two of their best players — Cordarrelle Patterson was recently placed on the IR, and now Kyle Pitts could be down for multiple games depending on the severity of the hamstring injury.

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