Getty Kyle Pitts of the Atlanta Falcons celebrates with teammates after scoring his first NFL touchdown on American soild.
On Sunday afternoon at Mercedes Benz Stadium, Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts scored his first NFL touchdown on American soil against the San Francisco 49ers.
During the third quarter, Pitts caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Marcus Mariota to give the Falcons a 28-14 lead.
The wait is over, Kyle Pitts catches his first NFL touchdown in America and at MBS ‼️
📺: FOX || NFL+
#SFvsATL || #DirtyBirds
He capped it off by doing the “dirty bird” in the end zone to celebrate alongside rookie teammates Drake London and Tyler Allgeier.
He hit ’em with the Dirty Bird
The Falcons went on to beat the Niners 28-14 to improve 3-3 on the season.
However, don’t get too excited as Pitts ended the day with only 3 catches for 19 yards while the Falcons, once again, relied heavily on their run game.
It’s also notable to add that Pitts could be still dealing with a lingering hamstring issue after missing Week 5 to rest it.
Pitts’ First TD Happened Last Season
Pitts has two NFL career touchdowns so far.
In case you forgot, his first one came last season in London against the New York Jets.
The touchdown happened late in the first quarter against New York’s defensive lineman John Franklin-Meyers:
Kyle Pitts first NFL touchdown caps off a 92-yard drive‼️
📺: NFLN | @kylepitts__
But that wasn’t the only exciting play Pitts made. Here’s a look at his one-handed snag that caught a lot of attraction:
Pitts finished that game with nine catches for 119 yards and a score, which doesn’t compare well to his total 13 catches for 169 yards that he was on the 2022 season so far.
While Pitts has finally scored a U.S. touchdown, fans are still waiting to see the same tight end that we saw last season.
Pitts’ Lack of Production is Not His Fault
Pitts’s overall lack of production is not entirely his fault as the Falcons have been relying heavily on the run game this year–––which has to do with the offensive line doing a heck of a better job at run block as opposed to pass blocking.
Not to mention that quarterback Marcus Mariota hasn’t been very accurate with his throws.
The Falcons are currently averaging 162 rushing yards a game as opposed to their 71 yards a game through the air and it all comes down to the guys on the line.
“The O-line has been great. So have the receivers working farther down the field,” rookie running back Tyler Allgeier told AtlantaFalcons.com ahead of Sunday’s matchup. “We can’t do what we do without the guys blocking for us.”
Atlanta currently has the second-highest run-block grade, according to Pro Football Focus.
For a team who has struggled for years to get the run game going, you’re probably wondering how they go here.
“I think the most glaring thing is probably not the answer you’re looking for,” Arthur Smith said. “It’s the consistency, the work habits and getting better at it day to day. It’s a lot of the mundane. There’s no special pill, no certain exercise, it’s just creating those habits, working, understanding and guys getting better day after day. That’s really what it’s been.”
As for their pass block, they sit at No. 19 but imagine how terrorizing this offense could be if they figure out how to balance both.