ESPN Stokes the Fire of Kyle Pitts Trade Talk for Falcons

The NFL just saw two big trades go down, with Myles Garrett going to the LA Rams and A.J. Brown going to the New England Patriots. ESPN's Dan Graziano speculated on several players who could still be on the trading block, and he included Atlanta Falcons All-Pro tight end Kyle Pitts Sr.

Pitts is a logical choice for trade speculation, and he's been subjected to it for well over a year. He's currently playing on the franchise tag, which is a one-year, fully guaranteed contract that pays the average of the five highest-paid players at his position. In this case, $15.1 million for Pitts.

What's wrong with the Franchise Tag?

Players don't typically like playing on the franchise tag, because if they're good enough to get tagged as one of the top-five players, they're good enough for a multi-year deal on the open market. So any time a player is franchise tagged, trade speculation will follow.

Why don't they like playing on one-year deals, even if they are fully guaranteed? $15 million is a nice payday after all. Look no further than the Falcons signing Drake London to a four-year, $141 million extension this week that came with $100 million guaranteed.

Rather than one year of guaranteed money, London got three years of guaranteed money. That's why players don't like the franchise tag.

So why trade Kyle Pitts?

Graziano thinks this could still be a factor for possibly trading Pitts.

"Sources say the team is also engaged with the agents for star running back Bijan Robinson about a massive extension," Graziano wrote on ESPN. "Pitts could be part of that plan, too, but he's scheduled to play on a $15.045 million franchise tag if an extension isn't done before July 15. He's coming off an 88-catch, 928-yard, and five-touchdown season, but the previous four campaigns were spotted with inconsistent health and production."

Former general manager Terry Fontenot made the right decision to pick up Pitts' fifth-year option and gamble that his first-ever draft pick, who was still just 24 years old, could produce a season that would turn him into a viable asset. Pitts did, and new general manager Ian Cunningham did the right thing by placing the franchise tag on Pitts while they evaluated a possible long-term extension or potential trades.

The aforementioned inconsistent health and production problems make giving Pitts top of the market money across multiple years a gamble the Falcons didn't have to make yet.

Who could be interested in Pitts?

"If they don't get him extended by July 15, and that rankles him and/or they struggle early in the season, teams will come asking about the availability of the uber-talented former top-10 pick, who doesn't turn 26 until October," Graziano continued.

"Baltimore lost a pair of tight ends -- Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar -- in free agency and could be looking for the kind of offense Pitts can generate."

Winning cures all.

If the Falcons struggle, it means the combination of Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. is likely also struggling, and Atlanta will be in the market for a quarterback in the 2027 draft. Rather than committing big money to Pitts, moving him ahead of the deadline and getting a late Day 2 pick could make sense while the Falcons continue to find a long-term successor to Matt Ryan.

Atlanta is well under the cap for 2027, with more than $100 million available, No. 2 in the NFL according to Spotrac. They can sign Robinson and Pitts to extensions, but would they be better off with cap space to spend in other areas of the team and more picks in the draft?

A fast start for the Falcons that sees them in playoff contention near the trade deadline would answer that question. If Pitts is a key player on a contending team near Halloween, he isn't going anywhere.

If the Falcons start slowly, all bets are off.

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