The Atlanta Falcons have placed TE Kyle Pitts on injured reserve following a knee injury suffered in his team’s 27-24 win over the Chicago Bears.
Pitts took an awkward shot from Bears safety Eddie Jackson which resulted in an MCL tear that will cost him at least the next 4 games and possibly more.
While the Falcons and Pitts continue to weigh their options, it’s largely expected that the talented 22 year old will opt for surgery, effectively ending his season.
“He has such a huge impact on this team,” head coach Arthur Smith said. “I know the numbers aren’t as gaudy as they were as a rookie and he’s been playing through a lot, and he’s a tough guy and he has had a huge impact.”
After recording 68 catches for 1,026 yards as a rookie, expectations were high for the former Florida Gator heading into his sophomore campaign. However a variety of injuries, including a lingering hamstring issue have largely diminished Pitts’ impact on the Falcons offense in 2022.
With only 28 catches for 356 yards and 2 TDs through 10 games, Pitts has struggled to replicate the success of his rookie year.
“The guy is a great teammate. He doesn’t pout like a lot of guys with that amount of hype because he’s a real person and that’s why we love him. He’s a real teammate, and the future is really bright for him and that’s why we’re so excited to have him in this organization,” Smith told reporters.
Currently sitting at 5-6, the Falcons still have postseason aspirations as they trail the division leading Buccaneers by only a half game heading into week 12. While it would be surprising to see Atlanta try to rush the former 4th overall pick back to the field, should he and the club elect to go with a rehab option, Pitts could theoretically return for the home stretch of 2022.
In his absence, the job of filling the 6’6” TE’s shoes will fall to one of Parker Hesse, MyCole Pruitt, Anthony Firkser, or Feleipe Franks. To date, Hesse leads the way amongst back up TE’s with 5 receptions on 6 targets for 50 yards and 0 TDs.
Atlanta takes on Washington in Week 12, followed by the Steelers and then their Bye. Because of his IR designation, Pitts will miss at a minimum those two games plus contests against the Saints and Ravens. Should the team still be in contention, it’s possible a return vs. Arizona on January 1st could be in the cards.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: Atlanta Falcons. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.