Getty Kyle Pitts #8 of the Atlanta Falcons.
Atlanta Falcons fans got what they wished for in the 27-23 win over the Seattle Seahawks on September 25.
After two losses and two weeks of rarely targeting Kyle Pitts, head coach Arthur Smith seemed to have listened to fans’ pleas as Pitts finished the day with five catches for 87 yards on eight targets. A week earlier, against the Los Angeles Rams, Pitts was targeted just three times. He caught two of those passes for 19 yards.
“I don’t know,” Pitts said after the game. “The ball found me. … I just always do my job and if an opportunity came, I did something with it.”
Today was the day many #Falcons fans were waiting for…
@kylepitts__ got the ball quite a bit this afternoon with 5 catches, 87 yards on 8 targets.
Question from @mikerothstein on what worked today:
Falcons Fans React to Kyle Pitts’ Usage vs. Seattle
Falcons fans and others chimed in across Twitter with a lot of excitement and plenty of sarcasm over the way Smith used Pitts against Seattle:
“The Falcons are using Kyle Pitts and good things are happening
Who would have thought?,” one fan tweeted.
“Weird what happens when you throw the football to kyle pitts,” NFL writer Brad Rowland said in a tweet.
“The media really bullied Arthur Smith into using Kyle Pitts 😭,” another fan joked.
“Good things happen when you throw the ball to Kyle Pitts,” a user tweeted.
“Drake London, Calvin Ridley & Kyle Pitts in 2023 sheesh 😤🔥🔥,” NFL Network’s LaQuan Jones chimed in.
“Kyle Pitts is still really f****** good just incase you forgot,” tweeted a fan.
“KYLE PITTS IS SEMI-FREE,” another fan wrote.
Falcons’ running back Cordarrelle Patterson also gave his reaction to Pitts’ usage and performance after the win.
“He’s (expletive) great, man,” Patterson said, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I know he’s been down these last few games, not getting the targets he deserves. But for him to come in, not stress over anything, he’s that guy. He doesn’t let [stuff] get to him. To see him go down and kill it early, it’s great, man. I appreciate that guy. He’s a better blocker this year than last year. He’s just hungry. I appreciate that, man.”
While Pitts’ usage versus Seattle is a step in the right direction, Smith and Co. must keep it up in order to not only make fans happy but also to not let their 2021 No. 4 overall draft pick go to waste.
Patterson Was the Star of the Show
Yes, Pitts may have had himself a day, but Patterson was the real star of the show, rushing for a career-high 141 yards on 17 carries with one touchdown.
Both teams were run-heavy on Sunday as Seattle finished with a 112-rushing yard day.
“They wanted to run the ball today,” Smith said, according to Teri McElhaney of atlantafalcons.com. “So did we, and we were the last team standing. So, yeah, I’m proud of our guys.”
But when Patterson was doing his thing, Pitts and the others were helping the offensive line clear the way for CP.
“We do pride ourselves that everyone is out there blocking in our run game,” Smith said, according to McElhaney. “We don’t have receivers that take plays off. That’s not our mindset. They go out there just like the linemen because it’s a coordinated effort. Those guys were finishing.”
On tap for the Falcons in Week 4 are the Cleveland Browns, which is another run-heavy opponent featuring Nick Chubb.
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