One of the more settled position groups on the roster, tight end was looking pretty good for the Atlanta Falcons heading in to the 2022 NFL Draft. Although the team lost Hayden Hurst to free agency and veteran Lee Smith to retirement, the depth chart was in good shape with Kyle Pitts at the top and a solid TE3/4 candidate in former UDFA Parker Hesse.
Atlanta then added veteran Anthony Firkser to take over TE2 duties, which took the pressure off to find an instant-impact rookie across from Kyle Pitts. The Falcons instead opted to draft a blocking specialist late in sixth round, Georgia’s John FitzPatrick, to take over the Lee Smith role.