Has Falcons TE Kyle Pitts lost "best prospect ever" title to UGA product?
Kyle Pitts was widely regarded as the best tight-end prospect in NFL history before being drafted by the Falcons, but is that title now lost to a local Georgia Bulldog product?
Kyle Pitts was something else coming out of Florida in 2021. After a breakout, dominant final season with the Gators, Pitts lit up the NFL Combine on his way to becoming the highest-drafted tight end in NFL history when he was drafted by the Falcons with the fourth-overall pick.
Pitts was seen by everyone as the "greatest tight end prospect ever."
While things haven't gone great for Pitts following his standout rookie season, there is no denying that he was an elite prospect.
Now, as many prepare for the 2024 NFL Draft, there has been a debate about whether or not Georgia's Brock Bowers has taken the title from Pitts.
Who is the better tight end prospect: Kyle Pitts or Brock Bowers?
Right now, we have a weird dynamic when asking this question. Many Falcons fans are Georgia Bulldogs fans so there is a battling bias taking place. There is also some recency bias since we have seen Bowers dominate the past few years while Pitts has struggled by no fault of his own.
To answer the question at hand, we have to look at a few different aspects of the two elite prospects. Let's start by comparing their stats during their time in the SEC.
College stats:
Games | Receptions | Total Yards | Total TDs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Kyle Pitts | 24 | 100 | 1,492 | 18 |
eBrock Bowers | 40 | 175 | 2,731 | 31 |
Bowers basically played a whole extra season thanks to his quick development coming out of Napa High School.
If you look at the per-game stats then Bowers averaged .2 more catches per game, six more yards per game, and they essentially tied in touchdowns per game.
It is also worth mentioning that Pitts put together a 770-yard, 12-touchdown season during what was a Covid-shortened eight-game season in 2020. That is ridiculous production.
From here, let's look at how they measured and performed at the combine and pro days
Combine:
Height | Weight | Arm length | Wingspan | Hand | 40-yd dash | 3-cone | Vertical | Broad | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kyle Pitts | 6' 5 5/8" | 245 lbs | 33 1/2" | 83 3/8" | 10 5/8" | 4.44s | 7.12s | 33 1/2" | 129" |
Brock Bowers | 6' 3 1/8" | 243 lbs | 32 3/4" | 78 1/4" | 9 3/4" | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Kyle Pitts absolutely destroyed the combine and his Pro Day. Meanwhile, Brock Bowers didn't need to participate in anything other than basic measurements. Even if Bowers had participated, he wouldn't have bested Pitts' historic performance.
Film review:
Watching these two guys on film, they excelled at different things. Kyle Pitts was an excellent downfield threat who could run some nasty routes while Bowers was incredible after the catch and could line up literally anywhere.
I loved watching both of these guys. The way they play the position is different than anything we had ever seen at the college level. Personally, I believe Pitts' film was better during his final season thanks to his dynamic ability running routes and going after the ball.
However, this is no slight to Brock Bowers. In fact, among the 50-plus prospects I have watched thus far, Bowers was the most entertaining—I could watch his film over and over. He plays with a physicality that defies his size and has rare RAC ability. He is also a tough, strong blocker.
When you look at NFL.com's grade on each player, Kyle Pitts holds the edge with a 7.19 grade compared to Bowers' 6.71. However. Next Gen Stats' model gave Bowers the edge at 96 compared to Pitts' 92.
Conclusion:
First I have to start out by saying that you cannot go wrong with either of them as a prospect. They are both phenomenal talents. Kyle Pitts deserved to be the highest-drafted tight end and you can say the same thing about Bowers.
I believe they are players who would fill different roles with teams so it comes down to what your team needs.
With that being said, I still think Kyle Pitts holds the title. He is a more traditional receiving tight end than Bowers is with this height and he is a more dynamic separator when running routes. His extra ability to go high point a ball is very important. Bowers' best fit is in an offense that gets him the ball through the air and on handoffs, while Pitts' best fit is in any offense that isn't run by Arthur Smith.