Giants fans were reminded of the Kadarius Toney mess in a pretty unexpected way this week, and it came courtesy of a ranking that put his NFL career in a strange little comparison with Kyle Pitts.
On paper, the two former Florida Gators teammates aren’t remotely in the same lane. Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts has already made a Pro Bowl and piled up more than 3,500 yards across five seasons. Toney, the former New York Giants receiver and No. 20 pick in 2021, has just 340 yards since the start of 2022 and didn’t play last year.
That’s why CBS Sports’ Mike Renner ranking Toney No. 155 and Pitts No. 159 among the 191 first-round picks from 2020-25 landed like a curveball. Toney has been an obvious bust, but Renner still slotted him ahead of Pitts.
“Kyle Pitts is a good player,” Renner explained, “but the decision to draft him No. 4 overall in 2021 was objectively not a good one considering the next six players off the board were Ja'Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, Penei Sewell, Jaycee Horn, Patrick Surtain II and DeVonta Smith.”
That logic makes sense. The surprise is just how far Renner pushed it by putting Pitts behind Toney.
Renner’s list had other head-scratchers too, including former Titans offensive lineman Isaiah Wilson - the No. 29 pick in 2020, who played four snaps - ahead of ex-Jets quarterback Zach Wilson. Even so, the Pitts-Toney swap is the one that really sticks.
And there is a real argument behind it. Pitts should not have gone that high, especially to a Falcons team that didn’t have a long-term franchise quarterback in place. Matt Ryan was heading into his final season, and Atlanta had no clear answer waiting behind him.
Pitts hasn’t done much to quiet that criticism, either. He hasn’t topped 1,000 yards since his rookie season, and that kind of production should be the baseline for any receiver or tight end taken in the top 10. Garrett Wilson is the cleanest comparison Renner could lean on, with the Jets star opening his career with three straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Still, Renner’s bigger point was aimed at Atlanta. The national conversation has kept trying to turn Pitts into the next Travis Kelce or George Kittle, even though he has not shown that level of impact.
And Pitts did end up getting the last laugh financially. He signed a three-year deal with $36 million in guaranteed money earlier this offseason, another eyebrow-raising move for a franchise that hasn’t reached the playoffs since 2017.
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