The Falcons and Bears contest was very entertaining on Sunday, with the Dirty Birds coming out on top. Atlanta stumbled at first, with multiple special teams blunders and a Cordarrelle Patterson red zone fumble. However, Arthur Smith’s team is persistent, if nothing else.
The defense, which has been unreliable this season, picked up the slack, sacking Justin Fields four times. And Patterson more than made up for his turnover with a record-breaking kickoff return touchdown. The Falcons spoiled Fields’ return home, but it came at a cost.
Multiple players went down with what could be serious injuries. Both Kyle Pitts and Ta’Quon Graham suffered knee injuries, but Arthur Smith didn’t have an update following the game. Earlier, insider Jordan Schultz reported the belief is the superstar tight end avoided tearing any ligaments, and Ian Rapoport echoed similar sentiments. However, in a more recent update, Rapoport says the fear is Kyle Pitts suffered a torn MCL and will require surgery, which could result in a stint on the injured reserve.
#Falcons TE Kyle Pitts is believed to have suffered an MCL sprain on Sunday based on initial tests, source said. He’ll having an MRI today to confirm the diagnosis.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 21, 2022
Early indications are that Kyle Pitts did NOT tear any ligaments in his knee, sources tell @theScore.
An MRI in the morning will confirm, but the #Falcons remain optimistic about their star TE.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) November 20, 2022
Arthur Smith said no updates on Kyle Pitts and Ta’Quon Graham
— Michael Rothstein (@mikerothstein) November 20, 2022
Sources: #Falcons standout TE Kyle Pitts is believed to have suffered a torn MCL that would require surgery. This is following his MRI today. A brutal blow to one of the game’s best young players. He’ll have a second opinion before deciding what's next. pic.twitter.com/bR4PyMJNks
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 21, 2022
Ta’Quon Graham was in the midst of a breakout campaign. A former fifth-round pick, the Texas product has quietly had a very successful season. He’s incredibly versatile, able to play in various alignments — 1-tech, 3-tech, 4i-tech, and even a 5-technique. He’s been critical in Grady Jarrett‘s impressive season too. With a reliable defender on the inside, Jarrett has been freed up more. It’ll be a devastating blow for the Falcons if Graham’s injury is a long-term concern.
Losing Kyle Pitts for any amount of time would be a tremendous blow to the team, but the Falcons’ priorities lie in the future, so getting him back to 100% for next season should be the only concern. Arthur Smith has made it clear the organization would have more information in the coming days, but we should all be crossing our fingers that Pitts avoided any structural damage because he’s vital to the offense’s success, regardless of what the numbers say.
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