TE, Florida
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 239 lbs
Class: Junior
Kyle Pitts is one of the more complete receiving tight ends to come out in recent years. His combination of size and speed make him a mismatch weapon in the passing game and he has been consistently productive since he became a starter for the Gators in 2019.
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Strengths
The first thing you notice when you watch Pitts play is how athletic he is for a tight end. He often looks like a receiver in the way he gets off the line of scrimmage and how he runs his routes, with excellent speed for the position too. He has a great catch radius and ranked second amongst tight ends with 13 contested catches last season.
Pitts is super versatile and has performed inline, in the slot and even out wide. He is the definition of a mismatch weapon wherever he lines up, being too quick for linebackers and too big and physical for corners. The video below shows him beating Derek Stingley, LSU’s top corner and a sure-fire first rounder in 2022. With the way that the game is headed this versatility is what teams are looking for at the next level.
Pitts has been really productive in his time as a starter. Pitts led the Gators in receiving yards last season and looks like he will do the same again this year. He has got off to an amazing start in 2020 and is really making a case to be TE1 in the 2021 class. Through three games he has 274 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, averaging over 16 yards per catch.
Weaknesses
The biggest concern around Pitts as a prospect is his size: more accurately his lack of it. At just 239 lbs he is pretty light for the position and needs to bulk out before reaching the NFL. There will obviously be concerns that this will come at the detriment of his speed, which is an essential part of his game.
Whilst Pitts is undoubtedly a great receiver, his role as a tight end is a little bit one dimensional. His lack of size makes him something of a liability as an inline blocker. This will be an essential part of his game at the next level and he needs to show that he is capable of performing all of the duties expected of the position. He will also need to improve from a strength standpoint and in terms of blocking technique, which is all over the place at the moment.
Bottom Line
Kyle Pitts is a fantastic prospect and at just 20 years old has plenty of time to continue developing and improving. Through three games in 2020 he is PFF’s highest graded player in all of the Power Five. If he continues his current level of production for the rest of the 2020 season he will cement his place as TE1 ahead of Pat Freiermuth. Expect him to be a top 15 pick come draft day.
Big Board Rank: #9
Position Rank: #1
