The Atlanta Falcons improved to 2-2 after a thrilling, last-second 26-24 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Atlanta has played each of the four games closely, and next week’s game against the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers could show just how good this team could be.
Yet the Falcons have had success without much contribution from perhaps one of their most important offensive players. Tight end Kyle Pitts had no catches on three targets, continuing a disappointing season for the fourth-year pass catcher.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris was asked about Pitts’ zero-catch performance and whether or not he and the staff are trying to get him more involved in the offense.
“You know, it’s about going out there and winning the game. When you’re out there, you’re playing,” Morris replied. “He had a few goals today, he had a few things going that way. At the end of this stretch we got another questionable call to Kyle. Those things are always unfortunate.”
In the second quarter, Pitts had a catch for a short gain that was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty on Drake London. That’s probably the “questionable call” Morris was referring to.
He was also undoubtedly alluding to officials missing Bryan Cook’s apparent pass interference on Pitts late in Week 3’s 22-17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Morris may have criticized the media and fans for focusing on Pitts’ numbers, rather than the result on the scoreboard. But statistics do show how effective a player’s performance was and how much impact he had on the game. That scrutiny is likely more intense for a tight end whose value is based on his receiving and yardage totals, rather than his blocking.
“But really, to me, stats are for losers, man,” Morris added. “I don’t get involved in that. You go out there and try to win every game. We were able to win it today. That’s what we did.”
Some might also conclude that Morris is taking the Pitts issue to offensive coordinator Zac Robinson to find more ways to get him the ball. But openness has been a problem for Pitts over the past two seasons, an issue that the previous coaching staff led by Arthur Smith also faced.
However, Pitts had a 50-yard reception against the Chiefs, a tantalizing reminder of his talent. Robinson indicated he would get the ball if he tried his best to get open.
“I think the more he can pay attention to detail and play as fast as he did, obviously the ball will just find him,” Robinson told reporters, via SI.com.
Pitts hasn’t had more than three catches in any of Atlanta’s four games. Overall, he has eight receptions (on 12 targets) for 105 yards and one touchdown. That’s not exactly the production Atlanta expected from a player who was selected No. 4 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft and who had 1,026 receiving yards in his rookie season.
