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TE Kyle Pitts, ATL (1 Viewer)

Florida TE Kyle Pitts ran the 40-yard dash in an unofficial 4.44 seconds during Wednesday's pro day.

Pitts (6'6/245) did exactly what we thought he would do on pro day -- absolutely crush it. There was the 40-yard dash, of course, but the fun started even before the Florida standout lined up for his straight-line sprint. Even in basic measurement, Pitts showed freakiness. Per PFF, the probable top-10 pick checked in with a longer wingspan at 83 3/8" than any NFL wide receiver or tight end in the last 20 years. That'll work. The question isn't whether Pitts goes high in the draft. It's how high. After the first three picks are presumably used on quarterbacks, he becomes a real option starting at No. 4 with the Falcons.

SOURCE: Field Yates on Twitter

Mar 31, 2021, 12:10 PM ET
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Kyle Pitts had an outstanding workout at Florida’s Pro Day

A couple of the top receiving prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft got a chance to show off for NFL scouts on Wednesday and both of them impressed.

Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase may have solidified his spot as the top player at that position with a 4.38 40-yard dash, an 11-foot broad jump, and a 41-inch vertical leap while working out at LSU. Kyle Pitts has little competition at the tight end rankings and his workout at Florida’s Pro Day won’t change that.

The 6’5″, 245-pound Pitts was timed at 4.44 in the 40-yard dash, a broad jump of 10’9″ and a 33.5-inch vertical leap. His wingspan was also measured at over 83 inches, which is longer than any other wide receiver or tight end who was measured at the Combine in the last 20 years.

Pitts will certainly be the first tight end taken in April. His size, speed, and ability to create mismatches for defenses makes him a strong contender to be the first non-quarterback taken as well.
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Twenty-Four Eighty-Four said:
Just for fun I suppose, Calvin was a WR. Pitts is a TE. Their metrics are not very different. Could there be some truth to some teams wanting to move him to WR?
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He's probably playing the same position now he will in the pros.  He'll get split out wide more often then lining up next to the OT.  He's more often than not a WR than a TE, already.  

He's already playing WR.  Who can block better than most WRs.  

 
massraider said:
He's probably playing the same position now he will in the pros.  He'll get split out wide more often then lining up next to the OT.  He's more often than not a WR than a TE, already.  

He's already playing WR.  Who can block better than most WRs.  
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Even if he was a WR he is no worse than Mike Evans value when he was a rookie.

 
JohnnyU said:
Even if he was a WR he is no worse than Mike Evans value when he was a rookie.
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Yep, I don't wanna get caught up in position. He's a passing game weapon.  

Pitts is big enough that teams will try and cover him with LB and S from time to time.  So he creates mismatches as a TE.  If you bring in a true corner to cover him, Pitts can toss him around in the running game or passing game.  

Is he a true TE? Well, no one is gonna cut him if his blocking never gets better.........

 
Twenty-Four Eighty-Four said:
Just for fun I suppose, Calvin was a WR. Pitts is a TE. Their metrics are not very different. Could there be some truth to some teams wanting to move him to WR?
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Similar but style of play is different IMO. Calvin was much more reliant on physical traits and was more explosive, vertical. Pitts has better footwork/agility and plays more like Waller IMO. 

 
He had a great pro day. Not sure I saw any flaws. His footwork and agility was much better than you would expect for a guy his size. Does he fit well for Cincinnati? 

 
massraider said:
He's probably playing the same position now he will in the pros.  He'll get split out wide more often then lining up next to the OT.  He's more often than not a WR than a TE, already.  

He's already playing WR.  Who can block better than most WRs.  
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Good point on the blocking. Who would you rather have out there blocking on a sweep or screen,  DeVonta Smith or Kyle Pitts?

 
Florida TE Kyle Pitts said at his school's Pro Day that no teams have mentioned using him at wide receiver specifically. 

Pitts (6'6/240) is considered by some to be the premiere talent in this draft class, even though he isn't expected to be the first overall pick. An elite pass-catcher with great athleticism, the former Florida tight end said on Wednesday that no team has specifically mentioned using him at wide receiver. Pitts did say that teams that he has spoken with have discussed using him "all over formations," however. Being able to use Pitts at multiple spots has the potential to be of great benefit to whichever offense he lands in. 

SOURCE: Kaelen Jones on Twitter

Mar 31, 2021, 3:06 PM ET
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Florida, Kentucky, LSU, Notre Dame, Wake Forest pro days: Kyle Pitts, Ja'Marr Chase post eye-popping 40s

Excerpt:

Pitts turned in unofficial 40-yard dashes of 4.44 and 4.46, further evidence that he's a tight end in name only. The consensus All-American rarely played with his hand on the ground at Florida, and with his athleticism, that's not likely to change at the next level.

"Who's gonna cover him?" Florida coach Dan Mullen said to NFL Network's Kimberly Jones, who was on assignment in Gainesville on Wednesday. "With his speed, with his size, with his athleticism, with his ball skills ... You can have a lot of fun in a game plan room putting him all over the place."

Measurements on Pitts left little wonder about the tight end's catch radius and ability to win contested throws, with big numbers in height (6-foot-5 5/8), hand size (10 5/8 inches) and wingspan (83 3/8 inches). He also had a wide receiver-like 10-9 broad jump at 245 pounds, per Reese's Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy.
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What Brian Flores told Kyle Pitts after UF ‘unicorn’ put on a show at his pro day

Some significant bits of information emerged from the University of Florida’s star-studded Pro Day:

Tight end Kyle Pitts is built like a pass rusher, runs like an X receiver and has arms like Inspector Gadget.

And if he slips to the Miami Dolphins at No. 6 — which is far from certain — general manager Chris Grier and coach Brian Flores would have serious interest in taking him.

Flores made the four-hour trip to Gainesville to get a close look at Pitts, the 6-5, 245-pound tight end who clocked a 4.44-second 40-yard dash Wednesday.

And before Pitts slipped inside after a great day of work, Flores sought him out.

“Me and him did talk,” Pitts told reporters on a Zoom call. “We talked for a little bit. He said we’ll get back on the phone this week. I feel like I did pretty well performing. He said I was doing pretty well. I PR’d [set a personal record] in everything I was training for. I guess the next step is the draft. Putting my head down, being back in football shape. I was in Combine shape. Now it’s getting ready for the next level.”

That next step will almost certainly include a home address in either South Florida, Atlanta or Cincinnati.

It’s next to impossible to envision him getting past all three of the Falcons (who pick fourth), Bengals (fifth) and Dolphins (sixth) in next moth’s draft. 

NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah ranks Pitts — who averaged 17.9 yards per reception and caught 12 touchdown passes in 2020 — as the draft’s second-best player, regardless of position.

Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN tweeted Wednesday that “Kyle Pitts is my highest-graded tight end EVER.”

But Florida coach Dan Mullen had the best description Wednesday.

“He’s kind of like a unicorn,” Mullen said. “The only way you can defend a unicorn is with another unicorn. So if you don’t have one on defense, you have a problem.”

It’s hard to find a comp for Pitts because he’s so unique. His wingspan is 83 3/8 inches (yes, that’s almost 7 feet), which is the largest of any tight end in two decades. He played inline tight end, in the slot and split out wide at UF.

Imagine if Calvin Johnson could play with his hand in the dirt. That’s the closest comparison we have — and the reason Pitts has a great chance of being the first nonquarterback to come off board.

The Dolphins could have guaranteed landing Pitts, but passed up that opportunity when they moved from third to sixth. Now, they are the mercy of the Falcons (who could take a quarterback at four) and Bengals (who need major help on the offensive line).

Pitts’ performance Wednesday might have been enough to convince the Falcons to roll with Matt Ryan and take the unanimous All-American tight end.

“They’re saying they have interest in me,” Pitts said of Atlanta’s front office. “After today, we’ll get back on a Zoom and they’ll try to learn more about me. I feel like they’re pretty interested. It would be a dream come true to be a top five or even the first nonquarterback to come off the board. That’s something I look forward to in the draft.” 

If Pitts is goes at No. 4, the draft’s ensuing 15 minutes will be a nervous time for Miami. The Bengals are apparently giving thought to reuniting Joe Burrow and his former LSU teammate Ja’Marr Chase, who also had his big predraft workout Wednesday.

Grier flew to Baton Rouge for LSU’s Pro Day, and had to come away impressed. Chase’s 40 time (sub-4.4) and vertical leap (41 inches) might have secured his place as WR1 ahead of DeVonta Smith.

What could earn Pitts the edge over Chase: He can play tight end and wide receiver. You won’t see Chase lined up with a hand in the dirt.

But Jeremiah believes Pitts would be a top-five pick purely an X receiver. His added value comes from the matchup headaches he will provide defensive coordinators in the seam.

“[NFL teams] have mentioned utilizing me in different areas but not just specifically receiver,” Pitts said. 

He added: “You dream of this your whole life and to see it in front of your eyes, it’s different. So being able to have the opportunity to even step into the NFL or be a top-10 pick, it’s not many people that are fortunate enough to do that, so just me being in that position, God blessed me in that way and I feel like that’s something special.”
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Wow, I can't even relate to the movie quotes because I've never seen Trading Places.

Seriously considering this guy. I don't want to draft a Njoku, but nobody seems to want to turn this guy into Vernon Davis, so I just might have to really take a look. I don't trust Flores, though. He might think he has another Gronk on his hands and leave him in to set blocks all day.

 
Soulfly3 said:
wait, ppl think a team is going to spend a top 10 pick on a TE for him to.... block?
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I think the question is how much production can we expect. Many first round super-athletic tight ends have been drafted (Fant, Njoku, Engram...etc), will Pitts be able to produce enough to justify his FF ADP? Granted Pitts seems to be have been built in a lab, but there are a ton of good athletes at the TE position and we don’t see too many putting up elite numbers. I think he can at some point but history is not kind to this position and it will take the right scheme fit and QB to get there.

 
Best TE prospect in NFL history...I said it before but if he doesn't turn into a stud I never want to hear about another high-end TE prospect again...he checks every box in today's NFL to be something very special.

 
From a fantasy point I'm getting more and more worried he gets WR designation from year 2 onwards.

Obviously his NFL team dont want to change it for $$ reasons, but that could be the mother of all hold outs.

He is going to score anyway but in start 2 WR 1TE standard scoring leagues I would probably avoid.

 
Boston said:
Best TE prospect in NFL history...I said it before but if he doesn't turn into a stud I never want to hear about another high-end TE prospect again...he checks every box in today's NFL to be something very special.
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See also: OJ Howard, Eric Ebron, TJ Hockenson, David Njoku, Evan Engram, Hunter Henry, Dallas Goedert, etc...

 
tangfoot said:
See also: OJ Howard, Eric Ebron, TJ Hockenson, David Njoku, Evan Engram, Hunter Henry, Dallas Goedert, etc...
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There's a skill in getting open and going to the right spot in a zone. Being on the same page with a QB. Is Pitts elite in more than just physical metrics? 

 
In his latest mock draft, NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah projected the Cincinnati Bengals to select Florida TE Kyle Pitts with the No. 5 pick.

It was essentially a bit of conventional wisdom, for the longest time, that the Bengals would be drafting Oregon OL Penei Sewell at No. 5 in order to help keep Joe Burrow clean (goodness knows they need help on the line). That conventional wisdom has softened considerably by this point, though, and we've now seen multiple evaluators mock either Pitts or Ja'Marr Chase to the Bengals over the past two weeks or so. Jeremiah is sold on the logic of taking a skill-position weapon in this spot due to the depth of the offensive line class. As for the first four picks prior to the Pitts-Cincy marriage in DJ's mock? Quarterbacks galore. Trevor Lawrence to the Jags, Zach Wilson to the Jets, Mac Jones to the 49ers and Trey Lance to the Falcons. 

SOURCE: NFL.com

Apr 6, 2021, 12:20 PM ET
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