The Atlanta Falcons have begun their first OTAs (organized team activities) of the offseason on Tuesday. However, not everyone was in attendance. While the practices are voluntary, players are pretty much expected to be there.
According to Terrin Waack of the Falcons’ official website, there were several notable players who were marked absent, including quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud and tight end Kyle Pitts.
Waack went on to give a full list of no-shows.
“Falcons OTAs 1: A few notable names missing from open practice include TE Kyle Pitts Sr., QB Kirk Cousins, WR Ray-Ray McCloud III, ILB Troy Andersen, OLB Bralen Trice, OT Kaleb McGary and DL Morgan Fox,” Waack tweeted.
Kirk Cousins absence isn’t surprising
It’s not surprising that quarterback Kirk Cousins didn’t show up. Trade rumors started circulating almost as soon as Michael Penix, Jr. was drafted with the eighth-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Cousins showed up a couple of months ago for voluntary workouts, but that’s different than actually getting out and practicing on the field.
While Falcons’ management may have sounded somewhat supportive that Cousins showed up to those voluntary workouts, inside they weren’t. There is no way the Falcons want Cousins doing anything at the team facility.
Remember the Steve McNair situation with the Tennessee Titans in 2006? It was a foregone conclusion at that point that McNair was going to be moved. But, when he showed up to the team’s facility to work out, he was banned from entering. The Titans knew that if he were to sustain an injury there, they would be on the hook for the remainder of his contract. Not only that, they’d have an injured commodity that they couldn’t trade. An arbitrator later ruled that he was allowed to work out at the facility and he was traded to the Baltimore Ravens a couple of months later.
The Falcons absolutely don’t want any parts of a situation like that. They can say anything they want publicly, but they don’t want Cousins participating in these OTAs.
Pitts’ and McCloud’s absence unclear
Pitts was drafted with the fourth-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. No tight end has ever been taken that high in the Super Bowl era, and no tight end has been drafted that high since the Green Bay Packers took Ron Kramer in 1957.
So, it’s safe to say that expectations are very high for Pitts. His career got off to a great start in his rookie season, catching 68 balls for 1,026 yards and one touchdown. Since then, he has regressed. The Falcons still picked up his fifth-year option, which will pay him $10.878 million in 2025.
But, Pitts hasn’t even had a 100-yard game since his rookie year, so he can’t really be holding out for a new contract at this point, can he? If his absence is any indicator that he wants more money and/or a new contract, it’s probably safe to say he doesn’t have much standing. As of right now, it’s unclear why he was a no-show on Tuesday.
Pitts is in his second-year of offensive coordinator Zac Robinson’s system, so that might help him be more productive and get paid. He’s also got a young quarterback in Penix and that should help him as well. A tight end is a great safety valve for a young signal caller.
As for McCloud, he’s in the second year of a two-year deal that will pay him Pi money ($3.14 million). McCloud had a decent season in 2024 with 62 catches for 686 yards and one touchdown.
That’s nice, not thrilling, nice.
McCloud is paid relatively well for that kind of production, and if this is contract related, he’s better off getting into practice, having a productive year and hitting the free agency market in 2026.
