Kyle Pitts Injury Updates | Shark Bites

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts believes the knee he injured in 2022 remained a factor throughout the 2023 campaign. He had surgery on November 29, 2022 to repair MCL and PCL damage to his right knee, missed most of the offseason program, and was limited at the start of training camp. "It's a continual growth in terms of coming off an injury," Pitts said. "So each week was trying to get better, keep getting stronger and, you know, just doing what I need to do to get back to the bionic knee that I used to have. That natural knee, you know, after surgery." Pitts had two of his four best fantasy outings of 2023 over the final five weeks of the season. Hopefully healthier in 2024 and with HC Arthur Smith finally out of the way, Pitts has obvious bounce-back potential.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith announced Wednesday that QB Taylor Heinicke will start Sunday against the Vikings. It's not a shocking move after the team pulled QB Desmond Ridder from the Week 8 loss to the Titans. Ridder has largely struggled outside of a 329-yard passing effort in the Week 5 win over Houston. Since that game, he has tossed just 2 TD passes vs. 3 INTs across three contests, while also taking a sack on nearly 10% of dropbacks and losing 4 fumbles. Heinicke went an OK 12-of-21 (57.1%) for 175 yards (8.3 per attempt) after taking over against Tennessee. His 9.7 average target depth in that contest -- according to Pro Football Refernce -- was about 2 yards deeper than Ridder's season rate of 7.8. Pro Football Focus credits Heinicke with a career 8.8-yard average depth of target and 9.2-yard aDOT with the Commanders last season. Heinicke's career 63.7% completion rate comes in short of Ridder's (64.8%), and we've seen enough to know he won't bring consistent efficiency. But a daring downfield thrower could boost the fantasy production of Falcons WR Drake London and TE Kyle Pitts ... if Arthur Smith will allow the offense to exploit those skills. (And assuming London's groin injury doesn't linger, of course.) We're not significantly upgrading our outlooks for any Falcons offensive pieces on this switch. But a move away from Ridder at least allows for some optimism. We'll see whether London's able to play this week -- and then how Heinicke fares in his first Atlanta start. The Minnesota matchup looks fairly neutral for Falcons passing.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts had easily his best game of the season in the Week 5 win over the Texans. He led Atlanta with 11 targets, seven catches, and 87 yards. Pitts benefitted from the Falcons running 74 plays and throwing it 38 times. But his 28.9% target share was a season-high. The strong game comes just a few days after HC Arthur Smith admitted that Pitts still isn't back to 100% after last November's knee injury. He looked as healthy as he has all season in this one, though, making catches of 16, 18, and 20 yards. He won't get this type of passing volume most weeks, but Pitts is still capable of helping fantasy squads if he's past that knee issue. Next up is a Washington defense that just got smoked by the Bears.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith said this week that TE Kyle Pitts is still working back to full health from the PCL injury that ended his 2022 season. "There are no perfect timetables," he told reporters. "But there are certain things ... he's doing really well right now. And there are certain things that he can't. It's been a journey back. He's going to get there." As for when Pitts might get back to full health, Smith could only say that he's "getting close." He did add that Pitts "looked as fast as he did as a rookie" on "some things outside." Does all of this mean that Pitts is approaching a big rebound? Not necessarily. But it's likely playing at least a part in why Pitts' playing time is down a bit vs. last year; and why Jonnu Smith has seen just one fewer target and caught four more passes through four games. Pitts remains stashable in most fantasy formats, though he's also not a must-hold if you need that roster spot for something more helpful. We'll keep watching for signals of some rebound for the not-yet-23-year-old.

The Falcons begin training camp Wednesday, and it doesn't sound like TE Kyle Pitts will be taking the field right away. "He's still getting back. He's still working," WR Drake London said Tuesday, according to Josh Kendall of The Athletic. "Once he heals up, he's going to be the same Kyle Pitts we all know." We certainly hope that will be the case, but it's worrisome that Pitts isn't yet healed up from a MCL injury that knocked him out in November. Don't be surprised if Pitts slides down our fantasy football rankings a bit in the coming days. Any delay to Pitts' usefulness would likely be good news for London's target share. The WR trailed Pitts in that category before the TE went down last season.

Falcons WR Drake London finished his rookie season just 45th among WRs in PPR points per game. Yet he's going 22nd among WRs right now in Underdog Fantasy ADP. Why? Well, London did rank sixth among all wideouts in target share in 2022. He enjoyed a strong finish after QB Desmond Ridder took over for Marcus Mariota, averaging 9.0 targets, 6.3 receptions, and 83.3 yards over the final four games. And Atlanta increased its passing volume over that span. But the team still ranked just 24th in neutral-situation pass rate over that time. London also trailed TE Kyle Pitts in target share before Pitts went down with a knee injury. Atlanta sports a weak receiving depth chart behind those two for 2023, so there's room for both exciting young pass catchers to continue drawing large shares. But London will need more team passing volume to help him pay off at ADP. And drafting RB Bijan Robinson eighth overall would be a funny way for the Falcons to announce that they're going to pass a lot more in 2023. London sits only a little lower in our 2023 WR rankings than he does in ADP.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith said Wednesday that TE Kyle Pitts will miss the rest of the season with his knee injury. He underwent surgery on Tuesday (November 29) for what was reportedly a torn MCL. We don't have an official recovery timeline, but we'd expect Pitts to be available for at least some of the offseason program and back to 100% by training camp. He had a frustrating 2nd season but remains a high-upside dynasty asset with plenty of 2023 bounce-back potential. We'll be curious to see exactly where he goes in early drafts this coming offseason.

Falcons WR Drake London found the end zone in Sunday’s win over Chicago. He created a ton of separation for a short-range score. That 1st quarter catch marked his only one of the day, though. London’s 3 targets represented a 15% team share, as Marcus Mariota remained a low-volume passer. Kyle Pitts is slated to miss time with a knee injury, so perhaps the rookie’s involvement will tick up a bit. Still, it’s hard to bank on a major turnaround given the run-heavy environment. Atlanta faces the Commanders in Week 12.

The Falcons have placed TE Kyle Pitts (MCL) on IR for his knee injury. That means he'll miss at least 4 games. We'll see about confirmation on him missing the rest of the year. MyCole Pruitt and Parker Hesse are the next guys up at TE but shouldn't factor significantly into fantasy football plans. WR Drake London could see more targets with Pitts out. He drew just 1 against Chicago, though, in the game Pitts left early.

The Score's Jordan Schultz reports that "early indications" are that Falcons TE Kyle Pitts did not tear any ligaments in his knee. Pitts is scheduled for an MRI on Monday, so we should learn more about his status then.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts left in the 2nd half of Week 11 with a knee injury. He's questionable to return, per the team.

The Falcons expect TE Kyle Pitts to play today against the 49ers, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Pitts is dealing with a hamstring injury that cost him Week 5.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts (hamstring) remained limited in Thursday's practice. It looks like he's on track to return for this weekend's game vs. the 49ers, but we'll see how Pitts is listed on the final injury report tomorrow.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith said Friday that TE Kyle Pitts' hamstring injury is "not expected to be long-term." Smith, per ESPN's Michael Rothstein, said Pitts "woke up more sore than usual" after last week's game, so the team is being cautious in holding him out this Sunday. We'll see if Pitts is able to make it back for Week 6.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts (hamstring) missed his 2nd straight practice on Thursday. He's in real danger of missing this weekend's game vs. the Bucs. We'll see if Pitts practices tomorrow and how he's listed on the final injury report.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts missed Wednesday's practice and is on the injury report with a hamstring. It's the 1st we've heard of the issue, although it's worth noting that Pitts played a season-low 62% of the offensive snaps last week. Check back tomorrow for another update.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts suffered an apparent hamstring injury in the 1st half of Sunday’s game at Buffalo. He posted 2 catches for 69 yards before departing. We’ll let you know if he returns in the 2nd half.

Update: Pitts returned for the start of the 2nd half.