The Atlanta Falcons may not have a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but it's still draft season in Atlanta. Fans are already speculating about how Ian Cunningham's first draft as GM could look, but until April rolls around, most of that talk will be overshadowed by Kyle Pitts' impending free agency.
Pitts is expected to be franchise tagged before earning a long-term deal, but there's still a chance the Falcons let him test the open market. And if that happens, given the demand for a player of his caliber, there's a real chance he isn't in Atlanta next season, which will force Cunningham to address the position in some capacity.
In ESPN analyst Matt Miller's latest two-round mock draft, he had the Falcons drafting star Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers with the No. 48 pick, hinting at the idea he doesn't think Pitts will be back in 2026. Or his could be an instance of Kevin Stefanski drafting a new Harold Fannin Jr. in Atlanta.
Falcons replace Kyle Pitts with Eli Stowers in Matt Miller's latest mock draft
Miller is pretty plugged in in league circles, but it's also early enough into draft season that it's hard to get a real grip on where things stand. The Senior Bowl just concluded and we haven't even crowned a Super Bowl champion, so the only thing set in stone is that Fernando Mendoza is going to Las Vegas.
Stefanski employs a 2-TE system, so this mock may not be as much of a dead giveaway that Pitts wont be back as it may seem. The Browns got good production out of Fannin and David Njoku this past season, so a dual tight-end system could help Michael Penix Jr. take a step forward in Year 3.
The converted QB caught 62 passes for 469 yards and four touchdowns for the Commodores in 2025, helping lead them to their best season in program history. Like Pitts, Stowers won the John Mackey Award that is awarded to the best tight end in college football and stands at a beastly 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds.
The one knock on Stowers is that he will be 23 before he even plays a down of NFL football, but even that isn't enough to have a team running for the hills. I'll admit, drafting him in the second round is a bit rich for my liking, but if they traded back or took him in the third round the pick would be fantastic.
The Dirty Birds know better than to let the Florida product go, especially after his bounce-back year. Beyond that, Cunningham and Matt Ryan should be well aware that this roster has bigger holes to fill than a second-round tight end to complement a star who may or may not leave in free agency, especially when they can get more out of this pick.