Ever since the Atlanta Falcons placed the franchise tag on Kyle Pitts, questions about his future in Atlanta have run rampant. The belief was that the tag was meant to buy Ian Cunningham time to agree to an extension with the 26-year-old, but there have been rumors that he could be traded.
With the Falcons' voluntary offseason workouts starting today, many questioned if Pitts would report to the facility and sign his franchise tag. And according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, those fears were all for naught, as Pitts did sign his tag and shockingly reported to the facility earlier this morning.
Rapoport noted that Pitts had until July 15 to sign his tag, but instead of entering a stalemate with the team in hopes of earning a new contract, he's putting the team first. This new regime has plenty of time to get a deal done with him, but it'll also give Kevin Stefanski a shot to prove 2025 was no fluke.
Kyle Pitts reporting to voluntary offseason workouts is a big win for the Atlanta Falcons' new regime
Pitts will make $15.045 million on the franchise tag in 2026, money which is fully guaranteed. If they wanted to trade him, for as popular as the tag-and-trade approach is, it doesn't make any logical sense. And he's forced to bet on himself remaining consistent for another year before any payday.
The former top-five pick putting his ego aside to make a strong first impression with this new regime is noble, especially amid all of the trade rumors that have surrounded him this offseason. But they know full well how important he is to this offense, even as the third option behind Drake London and Bijan Robinson.
Pitts' 88 catches and five touchdowns marked career bests, while his 928 receiving yards were the most since his rookie year. The former Mackey Award winner finally looked every bit like the generational prospect he was looked at as coming out of college, so naturally he waited until a contract year to break out.
Stefanski employs a TE-friendly offense, so it should be easy for him to build on this success in 2026 as a security blanket for Michael Penix Jr. or Tua Tagovailoa. However, London and Bijan are also vying for long-term extensions in Atlanta, and the Dirty Birds should probably prioritize those deals.
By the looks of it, it sounds like the Falcons will put extension talks with Pitts on the back-burner because of London and Bijan, but also because they want to see if he can replicate his production from last season. So while having Pitts in the building is a big plys, he still has a lot on the line in 2026.