Kyle Pitts Delivers Historic Performance in Falcons' Thrilling Win Over Buccaneers
On a Thursday night stage that begged for a star to take over, Kyle Pitts didn’t just show up - he erupted. The Falcons tight end put together the kind of performance that doesn’t just win games, it rewrites the record books.
In Atlanta’s dramatic 29-28 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pitts turned in a career night: 11 catches, 166 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. That’s not just a good outing for a tight end - that’s a historic one.
Pitts became just the fifth tight end in NFL history to post at least 150 receiving yards and three touchdowns in a single game. The last to do it?
Shannon Sharpe, all the way back in 1996. That’s the kind of company Pitts joined on Thursday - Hall of Fame-level stuff.
The other names on that exclusive list - Kellen Winslow Sr., Todd Christensen, and Rich Caster - are legends in their own right. Now Pitts, a former first-round pick with sky-high expectations since day one, has earned his place among them.
What makes this performance even more remarkable is how unexpected it was. Pitts hadn’t topped 100 yards in a game since his rookie season.
He came into Thursday night with just one touchdown on the year. And yet, against a division rival in a must-win scenario, he looked unstoppable - a matchup nightmare for the Bucs defense from the opening snap to the final whistle.
This wasn’t just a flash-in-the-pan performance either. Over the past three weeks, Pitts has quietly been ramping up.
He’s now totaled 24 catches for 338 yards and three touchdowns in that span. That’s not just a hot streak - that’s a player finding his rhythm and reminding everyone why he was taken so high in the draft.
With his three-touchdown night, Pitts has already tied his career-high for touchdowns in a single season, and he’s now surpassed his second-best mark for receiving yards in a year. And there’s still football left to be played.
Of course, Pitts’ resurgence also raises big questions for Atlanta’s front office. The tight end is set to hit free agency soon, and the Falcons will need to decide how they want to handle his future. They’ve got options: let him test the open market, work out a long-term extension, or place the franchise tag on him to buy more time - and potentially leverage a trade.
Whatever route they take, one thing’s clear: Pitts is making that decision a lot more interesting with every passing week. His performance Thursday wasn’t just a breakout - it was a reminder of the elite talent he’s always had. And if this is the version of Kyle Pitts the Falcons are getting down the stretch, they might just have a game-changer on their hands at the perfect time.