Kyle Pitts Ain't Leaving

By Matt Schauf | Updated on Mon, Feb 23 2026 9:33 PM UTC

The Falcons plan to use the franchise tag on TE Kyle Pitts, according to multiple reports. Pitts would be set to hit free agency for the first time without the tag. Instead, he'll get a one-year deal that's expected to be worth a little more than $16 million.

What They're Saying

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport: "The hope is to work out a long-term deal rather than the tag. The two sides have until July to do it."

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

Pitts delivered a career-high 12.4 PPR points per game in 2025, finishing fifth at the position in that category and second in total PPR points.

That production aligned with some changes to the way Atlanta deployed Pitts.

For the second straight year, Pitts set a career low in pass snaps spent in the slot -- according to Pro Football Focus. He also set a second straight career low in average depth of target, and a second straight career high in inline snaps.

He'll return to a brand new Falcons coaching staff, though, with HC Raheem Morris fired and OC Zac Robinson gone to Tampa Bay.

New HC Kevin Stefanski and OC Tommy Rees both arrive from a Cleveland offense that supported strong TE production in 2025.

Rookie Harold Fannin Jr. racked up a 72-731-6 receiving line while splitting most of his time between the slot (41.4%) and inline (42%). That's not far off from Pitts' 2025 split: 34.7% in the slot, 45.0% inline.

Pitts' talent, his 2025 production, the record of his new coaches, and the financial investment involved in bringing him back all point to Pitts enjoying another productive role in 2026 (and potentially beyond).

Best Ball Impact

Pitts sits a reasonable seventh among TEs in current best ball ADP. He's eighth in our PPR (and half-PPR) rankings as of this writing

Mix him into your drafting if you're building out a best ball portfolio right now.

We'll see where Pitts settles in redraft ADP over the summer.

Matt Schauf, Editor

Matt has earned two Fantasy Pros accuracy awards for IDP rankings and won thousands of dollars as a player across best ball, dynasty, and high-stakes fantasy formats. He has been creating fantasy football content for more than 20 years, with work featured by Sporting News, Rotoworld, Athlon, Sirius XM, and others. He's been with Draft Sharks since 2011.