Falcons: Will Kyle Pitts have a better career than Julio Jones?

Julio Jones is without a doubt the greatest receiver to ever wear a Falcons uniform, and one of the best the NFL has seen. Some might even argue that during his prime he was the greatest pass catcher ever.

You cannot help but compare Kyle Pitts to Julio Jones, even if they play different positions, they are both tall, fast, physical, and extremely smart. Julio knows what it is like to dominate the NFL while Kyle Pitts is just finding out, but will the young tight end have a better overall career when it is all said and done?

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts has a steep climb to catch Julio Jones status

The Falcons have a superstar tight end in the making in Kyle Pitts, he has high expectations as fans are used to seeing high level of play from their pass catchers. Julio Jones, meanwhile, is a free agent as of right now after an extremely disappointing year with the Titans.

Everyone can probably agree that Julio Jones’s days of putting up 1,500 yards are probably over but he could still be an important piece for whoever ends up signing him.

Anyways, let’s start out by looking at Julio’s career stats and achievements so far:

• 7x Pro Bowl
• 2x All-Pro
• 145 career games
• 879 career receptions
• 13,330 career receiving yards
• 61 career touchdowns

Obviously, that does not show everything he has done during his career but these are the main things you look at for a receiver.

Now let’s look at what Kyle Pitts did during his rookie season, and these numbers are certainly not going to be in the same realm as Julio’s:

• 1x Pro Bowl
• 17 career games
• 68 career receptions
• 1,026 career receiving yards
• 1 career touchdown

So, will Kyle Pitts be able to reach Julio Jones by the time his career is finished?

He certainly has a great chance to but it will not be easy and will depend on how healthy he can stay through the years. Another huge factor is that Julio had a stable quarterback during his whole career in Atlanta, something we are going to have to wait for when it comes to Kyle Pitts. Will it be Desmond Ridder? No one knows for sure.

One thing that is in Kyle Pitts’s favor is the fact that he made his NFL debut when he was exactly one year and 239 days younger than when Julio made his debut in 2011. This means that Kyle Pitts will finish his second season in the league at a younger age than when Julio played in his first NFL game.

This is a huge advantage for Kyle Pitts, he will have two more years of knowledge and statistics under his belt than Julio.

One thing that should be well within reach for Pitts is Julio’s career touchdown mark. Even though Pitts only caught one during his rookie year, he should see a huge up-tick in touchdowns as he gets better and better. Julio never put up amazing touchdown numbers like you would have expected, so Kyle Pitts should be able to catch him in that regard.

If you had to count on any young player to reach Julio Jones, it should be Kyle Pitts, he is talented enough to pass Julio but it will require him to stay healthy and consistent for a long time.