Some may question why it seems logical to pick up the rookie option on Pitts considering most feel he has yet to live up to his lofty-draft status.
The Falcons made Pitts the highest-drafted tight end in history when they took him No. 4 overall in 2021. With that selection, comes the slotted-contract money that comes with it. They higher a player is drafted, the more money he’s paid.
However, the fifth-year option on the rookie contract is different. It’s tied to the position much like a franchise-player tag, rather than where that player was taken in the draft.
Pitts’s fifth-year option is only $10.9 million according to OverTheCap. There are three factors that go into the compensation for the fifth-year option: position, playing time, and Pro Bowls.
As a tight end, who played enough snaps to get the playing-time bonus, Pitts’s option went from a base of $7.2 million to $8.0 million to $10.9 million since he made a Pro Bowl appearance as a rookie.
Rashawn Slater of the LA Chargers was taken with the No. 13 overall pick. He also has a Pro Bowl appearance on his resume. His fifth year option will pay him $19.0 million.
It seems odd that a rookie contract is slotted to where a player is drafted, but the fifth-year option on that contract is tied to his position.
It works out for the Falcons though. Pitts was a Pro Bowler his rookie season with Matt Ryan as his quarterback. He struggled with injuries and inconsistent quarterback play in 2022 and 2023.
He’s still just 23-years old, 5-months younger than Atlanta’s first-round pick Michael Penix Jr., and still oozes talent and upside.
$10.9 million is a relatively cheap gamble for the Falcons to take on his fully-guaranteed option year.
They’ll have a decision to make on Drake London next year. London has yet to make a Pro Bowl, but he’ll easily make the playing time bonus. A wide receiver getting the playing time option, taken the year before London would be compensated $15.6 million. A Pro Bowl sees that number jump to $19.8 million.Expect that number to rise next year, and expect the Falcons to pick up London’s option.
A Pro Bowl snub isn’t always a bad thing for your team, but it can be costly to the player.
In 2026, it will be Bijan Robinson whose fifth-year option will be on the table. Robinson’s 2026 compensation, his fourth year in the league, is scheduled to be $7.0 million. The fifth-year option for Najee Harris of the Steelers is scheduled to be $6.8 million.
In the case of Pitts and Robinson, by taking a non-premium position in the top 10, they could get bargains on their fifth-year options. If Robinson become as big a part of the offense as Atlanta hoped he would become when they took him No. 8 overall in 2023, he may want to renegotiate his rookie deal.
But that’s a problem for way down the line and would be a good problem for the Falcons to have.
