Jets HC Robert Saleh Hypes Up Falcons TE Kyle Pitts

Falcons

Getty No. 8 Kyle Pitts of the Atlanta Falcons.

The Atlanta Falcons and New York Jets held joint practices this week ahead of their Monday night preseason matchup.

After getting up close and personal with the Falcons, Jets head coach Robert Saleh had some very kind words to say about their star tight end, Kyle Pitts.

“He is a create-a-player on Madden,” Saleh said during his post-practice press conference on Friday, August 19. “That’s exactly what you would look like. He’s going to be a dynamic football player for a long time. Anytime you get a chance to see just different avatars, they’re just different. When you get a chance to go up against those guys, it’s looks different, it feels different, and it elevates, and it just teaches you a few things.”

Saleh’s compliment on Pitts couldn’t have been any more perfect as the new Madden 23 dropped on the same day.

Pitts was later asked if he saw what Saleh said of him.

“I saw it, yeah,” he said. “It was pretty cool.”

At 6-foot-6, 245 pounds and full of speed, Pitts is a dream tight end for anyone building one within the game.

Even Pitts said he would replicate himself.

“Close to it,” he said.

Pitts has yet to play the new Madden but plans to do so once he gets back to Georgia and has some downtime.

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Pitts Reacts to Madden 23 Rating

Madden 23 released its player ratings last month and Pitts believes he deserves a higher score.

Entering his second season in the league, Pitts was given a solid overall rating of 87, making him the sixth-highest rated tight end in the game.

While also staring in a Madden promo, Pitts took to Twitter to let the game and Chad Johnson know that they were both sleeping on him.

The five tight ends rated above Pitts include, Chiefs’ Travis Kelce, 49ers’ George Kitte, Raven’ Mark Andrews, Raiders’ Darren Waller and Lions’ T.J. Hockenson.

Per Ari Meirov, here are the top 15 rated NFL tight ends in Madden 23:

Travis Kelce: 98
George Kittle: 97
Mark Andrews: 93
Darren Waller: 91
TJ Hockenson: 89
Kyle Pitts: 87
Mike Gesicki: 86
Dallas Goedert: 85
Hunter Henry: 84
Zach Ertz: 84
Dawson Knox: 83
Tyler Higbee: 83
Dalton Schultz: 82
Noah Fant: 82
Evan Engram: 81


Pitts Was the Highest Rated Rookie in 2021

Ahead of his first season in the NFL, Madden 22 had Pitts rated as the highest rookie with an 81 rating:

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts – 81
Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence – 78
Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle – 76
Broncos CB Pat Surtain II – 76
Jets QB Zach Wilson – 75
Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase – 75
Eagles WR DeVonta Smith – 75
Lions OT Penei Sewell – 75
49ers QB Trey Lance – 74
Bears QB Justin Fields – 74

A rookie had not been given a rating above 80 ahead of the season since Madden 19 was released when Colts’ guard Quentin Nelson received an 83.

However, Pitts still did not crack the top-10 rated tight ends that year as he did this year:

Travis Kelce: 99
George Kittle: 96
Darren Waller: 93
Mark Andrews: 88
Hunter Henry: 87
Austin Hooper: 86
Rob Gronkowski: 86
Mike Gesicki: 85
T.J. Hockenson: 85
Dallas Goedert: 84

Pitts finished his rookie campaign with 68 catches for 1,026 yards and one touchdown. He’s aiming for a better season in Year 2.

“Mentally, I feel like I’ve grown,” Pitts said. “Especially before the ball is snapped. I’m still trying to get better at it, both post-snap and pre-snap, by maturing mentally first.”

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