It took a trip across the pond for it to happen, but Atlanta Falcons rookie tight end Kyle Pitts notched his first career touchdown Sunday against the New York Jets.
With Atlanta facing a 1st and goal late in the first quarter, Arthur Smith dialed up a play-action concept for quarterback Matt Ryan. The intended target? Pitts, who was matched up against John Franklin-Myers, a defensive end who just signed a new contract extension. Franklin-Myers is a tremendous player for the Jets up front.
But perhaps not the ideal choice to matchup against Pitts in coverage:
ROOKIE'S FIRST SCORE HAPPENS ACROSS THE POND! @kylepitts__#DirtyBirds | @NFLUK
📺: #NYJvsATL on @NFLNetwork
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/BFGGRRNSUc— NFL (@NFL) October 10, 2021
Earlier this season Doug Farrar had the chance to sit down and watch film with Matt Ryan, and he shared some early thoughts on Pitts:
He’s got a really good skill set. He’s big, long, very good hands, he’s very athletic, he’s an explosive runner, and I think that showed up in the clip against the Browns. You look at just a simple crossing flat route that he’s able to turn into an explosive gain for us. His ability to finish plays like that is rare from a tight end — his ability to run in space and eat up yards like he does is impressive.
With that skill-set, you can expect to see more like this from Pitts as the Falcons offense evolves.
