The boldest move the Atlanta Falcons made this offseason has to be signing Kyle Pitts to a three-year, $54 million contract extension. He's coming off of a career year last season, but a large chunk of his production came when Drake London was out of the lineup or during the TNF win over the Bucs.
On paper, it seems like a nightmare scenario. But fear not, Falcons fans. We're going to be in for the Pitts year we've waited for--and that's not only going to benefit Kevin Stefanski and this new regime. It's going to benefit the fantasy football owners who've waited a half-decade for his breakout.
If you're a Pitts fantasy manager (like yours truly), you're certainly going to be happy with how this season will turn out. Even though the quarterback play in Atlanta isn't going to be hitting the history books anytime soon, but in a weird way, that's something that could actually benefit his fantasy stock.
I know most of you either already had your fantasy drafts or have yours at some point this weekend, so it's time for a crash course in what makes the 25-year-old a worthwhile fantasy investment. And for those of you who have been burned by him in the past, this is the year to reconsider your stance.
Kyle Pitts will offer fantasy managers elite fantasy football value
The former top-five pick finished as the TE2 (behind Trey McBride last season), yet according to FantasyPros, his ADP (average draft position) is around the 78th pick, which would be near the middle the seventh round (more specifically the 7.06) in 12-team leagues as the TE7 or TE8 off the board.
But beyond ADP or projected points, that is incredible value in the middle of your draft if you missed out on the top tier of TEs like McBride or Bowers. And that doesn't even offer the context. Stefanski loves tight ends, as both David Njoku and Harold Fannin Jr. were top fantasy TEs under his tutelage.
This is not endorsing the "this is Pitts' year" or " Pitts 1:01" memes. This is a genuine sentiment. In the preseason, Tua Tagovailoa recorded just 13 pass attempts. Of those 13, the sixth-year tight end was targeted six times, recording a 46.2% target share. That wouldn't just have led all tight ends in 2025--it would've led all NFL pass-catchers.
With a Falcons' receiver room that essentially starts and ends with Drake London, this Falcons' offense is relying on him to play a key role. The WR2 is Jahan Dotson on paper, but Pitts is going to be the second pass-catching offense and likely security blanket for the quarterbacks in Atlanta.
Regardless of who starts between Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., they'll need a safety valve--and the tight end is typically that in Stefanski's offense. But calling him a typical tight end is wrong when he's anything but ordinary--and he was plenty productive with Penix starting too.
A 6-foot-6, 250-pound pass-catcher who runs a 4.4 second 40-yard dash is more of a jumbo wide receiver than a tight end. He is truly a matchup nightmare in every facet, and that $18 million extension is incredibly high for a TE, but is well below league average for a guy who's a quasi-WR2.
With the amount that the Dirty Birds are going to run multi-TE sets (12 and 13 personnel), they can get creative in how the former Mackey Award winner will be deployed. He'll get to line up out wide in certain pckages, and he should finally become the red zone threat we've expected him to be in 2026.
Moreover, one of Stefanski and Tua Tagovailoa has supported a top-10 fantasy tight end every season dating back to 2020. That's six seasons of evidence supporting a Pitts breakout.
- 2025: Harold Fannin Jr. (6th)
- 2024: Jonnu Smith (4th)
- 2023: David Njoku (6th)
- 2022: David Njoku (10th)
- 2021: Mike Gesicki (9th)
- 2020: Mike Gesicki (7th
So people can overlook Kyle Pitts all they want in the face of a career year, but let them. Another career year is coming, so you better be the fantasy manager who gets their hands on him.
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