With just days to spare before the 2026 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons are still involved in trade drama, and I'm not referring to fallout from the Ruke Orhorhoro deal. Kyle Pitts has been floated as a player who could be dealt before or during the 2026 NFL Draft, even after being franchise tagged.
Given the difficulty the Falcons will have to extend him and their clear lack of draft capital, it's not insane to suggest he gets dealt at any point in the coming days. Atlanta has just five picks and both Drake London and Bijan Robinson should take precedence over Pitts in his pursuit of a new contract.
The trade rumors with the 25-year-old have lingered even after he was franchise tagged, so for as much as Kevin Stefanski and Ian Cunningham have said Pitts is in their long-term plans, a lot can change quickly during the NFL Draft, especially if they land an early Day 2 pick in exchange for him.
The Atlanta Falcons can reunite Kevin Stefanski with David Njoku if they trade Kyle Pitts
Pitts is set to be the NFL's highest-paid tight end in 2026, so if the Dirty Birds get enough interest to roll the dice and deal the ex-top five pick, they may already have his successor in mind. David Njoku is one of the top available FAs, will be considerably cheaper to sign, and there's an obvious connection to consider.
Stefanski loves the utilization of tight ends in his offense, so who makes more sense than a tight end he spent the last six years coaching in Cleveland? Not only is the 29-year-old one of the better TEs in the NFL, Njoku's connection to the two-time Coach of the Year has linked him to Atlanta all offseason.
A second wave of free agency is set to take shape after the draft, and because of Kaleb McGary's retirement, the Falcons have some money to spend. They added roughly $11 million in 2026 and $14 million in 2027, and they will have around $18 million in cap space after signing their 2026 draft class.
That's money they could use to reunite Stefanski and Njoku. Spotrac projects his market value at two years and $20 million, so an AAV in the $10 million range is certainly doable. But is that price tag worth it? Pitts is making $15 million in 2026, and he would offer better value on a new deal than Njoku, especially after his bounce-back season.
At this point, Njoku could be signed for cheaper than we expect, especially since he's been unsigned for so long. But he also caught just 33 passes for less than 300 yards in 2025, as Harold Fannin Jr. supplanted him as the top tight end in Cleveland. But he's still a solid TE, especially in the red zone.
The only way trading the Florida product would make sense for the Falcons is if they get a first-round pick in return, but that's highly unlikely. An early second-rounder would be intriguing, but for the money they owe him on the tag, it's not worth dealing him unless they can sign a talented successor like Njoku.