Account
NFL Coaches Praise Kyle Pitts: 'A Unicorn'; 'He's Ridiculous, Man, Holy Crap'
April 21, 2021
Florida tight end Kyle Pitts is drawing rave reviews from NFL coaches ahead of next week's 2021 NFL draft.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic spoke to multiple NFL coaches, and several of them showered praise on to the potential top-five pick.
An anonymous quarterbacks coach called Pitts a "unicorn," while a wide receivers coach said: "He's ridiculous, man. Holy crap. To be that big and that fast and that skilled—wow."
Pitts enjoyed a remarkable 2020 season in which he finished with 43 receptions for 770 yards and 12 touchdowns, making him the clear top tight end in the 2021 draft.
He did all of that in just eight games, building on a strong 2019 campaign that saw him make 54 grabs for 649 yards and five scores.
Every coach who Feldman spoke to about Pitts had something complimentary to say, including a second quarterbacks coach who called Pitts "special" and lauded his "good character."
That same coach called Pitts "more athletic and faster" than Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and said Pitts will be "way better than anybody else" in the NFL.
The Kelce comparison is significant since Kelce has been the best tight end in the NFL for the past several years.
Kelce is a six-time Pro Bowler, three-time First-Team All-Pro and one-time Super Bowl champion who has finished with at least 80 receptions and 1,000 receiving yards in each of the past five seasons. That included career highs across the board last season with 105 catches for 1,416 yards and 11 touchdowns.
If Pitts can come anywhere close to reaching that level of play, he will be among the elite tight ends in the league and a matchup nightmare for the opposition.
The first quarterbacks coach called Pitts "Darren Waller but a little more natural," which is significant as well in that the Las Vegas Raiders tight end is a Pro Bowler who topped 1,000 yards in each of the past two seasons.
It is difficult to envision Pitts slipping outside the top five of the draft even though the top three teams are likely to take quarterbacks. After that, the Atlanta Falcons at No. 4 and Cincinnati Bengals at No. 5 are both prime candidates to take him.
There is also a possibility that the Miami Dolphins (No. 6), Carolina Panthers (No. 8) or Dallas Cowboys (No. 10) could try to trade up in order to secure Pitts.