Drake London and Kyle Pitts are expected to be centerpieces of the next contending Falcons team. They made their duo debut with mixed results in the Week 1 loss to New Orleans on Sunday.
Both players were targeted seven times. London, in his first contest, had five catches for 74 yards. Pitts, though, had only two catches for 19 yards. Expect the Falcons to feature both heavily Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles.
“Amazing,” London said of his pairing with Pitts. “It’s been fun for me. I hope it’s been fun for him. He’s definitely a cool person and a good mentor. We’re kind of in the same boat, coming in here at a young age in the big leagues and just trying to find our way and navigate through that time. Our connection is really, really good, and I can learn a lot from him. He’s just been teaching me what he should’ve done when he was a rookie. Just giving me (advice) here and there.”
London impressed against the Saints, showing how he’s such a physical challenge for defensive backs and displaying the intermediate separation that should make him an instant hit. Pro Football Focus graded London at 71.5, which was its best mark among rookie receivers and the second-best grade on the Falcons’ offense (behind guard Chris Lindstrom, 79.4).
A first-round pick, London played 72% of the snaps. He led the team in receiving, including a 31-yard reception, and had three catches that created first downs. He added 18 yards after the catch, sometimes an underrated aspect of his skill set (London forced 22 missed tackles in his final collegiate season, per PFF).
“(My first game) came quick; a little bittersweet in that sense, I won’t have another one of those,” London said Wednesday. “It was fun. It was good.”
London was a question mark entering the game because of a knee injury he sustained in the exhibition opener, but the 21-year-old said it’s “fair to say” he’s feeling 100% now. He admitted experiencing jitters during his first game, but those dissipated when he felt his first NFL hit.
He looked as good as advertised, someone who pressures a defense with his physical attributes and versatility. London already has developed a nice rapport with quarterback Marcus Mariota, according to the players.
“When the ball came to Drake, he made some plays,” offensive coordinator Dave Ragone said. “He’s taken a professional approach. Come in, understand that you have a job to do, that’s mental and physical, and go about your work a certain way.”
A former player at USC, London’s second game comes in his native Southern California, where he’s expecting to see a good bit of friends and family.
Pitts, meanwhile, needed to touch the ball more (coach Arthur Smith nonetheless said he had “a huge impact” on the game). He presents one of the more menacing matchups in the NFL, a mammoth tight end with receiver speed and superb contested-catch ability. The highest-drafted tight end ever, Pitts is coming off a record-setting rookie campaign.
The Falcons must do a better job getting Pitts the ball. He played 63 snaps (84%) but was targeted 11% of the time, ultimately resulting in only two catches. Part of that was because the Falcons emphasized the run, which produced over 200 rushing yards.
There still were enough moments to show how tantalizing the Pitts-London tandem can be. Beyond their obvious physical advantages, their inside-outside versatility only adds to the potential. If the Falcons are going to outduel the Rams this week, it’s likely these two are at the center of it.
“It’s really cool,” Lindstrom told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution regarding the Pitts-London pairing. “When you’re playing, and you’re blocking, sometimes you see the guy catch and run, and you just go, ‘Oh, that’s a nice catch by Drake’ or ‘That’s a nice catch by Kyle.’ Then you just go onto the next play because you’re not thinking about it. Then you get into the film and you watch how special those moments were. You get a greater appreciation of what those guys can do Monday when you’re watching the film.
“There were so many times last year when Kyle made a play, you’re like, ‘Oh, nice, we got 4 to 5 yards.’ Then you look and it’s like, he caught that one-handed with a guy on him. It’s one of those things where there’s after-the-fact appreciation. But those guys are great teammates and it’s a lot of fun with them, and to play with them when they can do stuff like that.”
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