It’s Friday, and that means the Atlanta Falcons are just two weeks away from having rookies report to their Flowery Branch facility for training camp. The team’s rookies will arrive on July 24, followed by the veterans on July 28.
While the NFL news cycle has slowed to a crawl, we still managed to gather a handful of stories from around the NFL to help get you through another hot summer evening.
In today’s Falcons Wire recap, Dwight Freeney offers his thoughts on Kevin Stefanski’s in Atlanta, Kyle Pitts receives love in ESPN’s exec poll, Brian Robinson Jr. is praised by PFF, and we continue our training camp spotlight series with wide receiver Keelan Marion.
Kyle Pitts voted NFL’s No. 8 TE in ESPN poll
In the latest ESPN poll of NFL personnel, Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts was ranked No. 8 going into the 2026 NFL season. Here’s Pitts’ blurb, via ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Kyle Pitts received recognition from executives around the league, who have voted him one of the NFL’s top-10 tight ends on ESPN’s annual list. Pitts came in at No. 8 this year after going unranked in 2025. Here’s what Jeremy Fowler gathered about the Falcons tight end.
This is a welcome return to form for Pitts, who entered the league with much fanfare in 2021, posted a 1,000-yard rookie season and then experienced multiple down years. A nagging knee injury cost him the better part of two seasons… “If he’s confident and you believe in him, he will ball out,” an NFL coordinator said. “If he gets involved early, he can be the most dominant player on the field.”
Dwight Freeney on expectations for Falcons, Stefanki
Former Falcons defensive end Dwight Freeney was interviewed by DJ Saddiqi and answered a bunch of questions on the Colts, as well as a couple on the Falcons. Freeney was asked what Atlanta’s ceiling is under new head coach Kevin Stefanski.
“When you’re in a new system, new coach, it’s going to take some time,” said Freeney. “I don’t believe a one year fix, all of a sudden playoff contender. The good thing is they’re in that division where you might have a .500 team make the playoffs. That’s the good thing about that division, with Carolina and Tampa being those teams out there, and the Saints. There’s no real standout balling team that you really have to worry about.”
Falcons training camp spotlight: WR Keelan Marion
Our latest Falcons training camp spotlight series breaks down undrafted free agent wide receiver Keelan Marion:
Marion played for three different schools over his collegiate career. He began his career at Connecticut, recording 32 catches for 563 receiving yards over two seasons before transferring to BYU in 2021. While he failed to make an impact in two seasons with the Cougars, Marion transferred to Miami in 2025 and had a career year. He finished the season with 57 catches for a 746 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Marion recorded 133 catches for 1,871 receiving yards and nine touchdowns over his five collegiate seasons. — READ FULL STORY on Falcons Wire
NFL insider predicts Falcons starting QB
The Athletic’s Falcons insider Josh Kendall is predicting Tua Tagovailoa will be Atlanta’s quarterback, however, he believes the competition is very much up in the air.
“I sincerely don’t know, and I don’t think anybody does at the moment,” wrote Kendall. “This is a legitimate competition. With that caveat out of the way, if you’re making me pick right now, I’m picking Tagovailoa… Stefanski has been very clear about how much he values accuracy, and Tagovailoa has been much better over the course of his career. Health is also a major factor. We don’t know if Penix will be cleared for full activity at the beginning of training camp, and any time he loses could be costly.”
Brian Robinson Jr. praised by PFF
Pro Football Focus ranked Bijan Robinson as its No. 1 running back ahead of the 2026 NFL season. However, Brian Robinson received some love in the honorable mentions section.
“Robinson didn’t get a ton of action backing up Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco, but he does have three separate 700-yard seasons under his belt and forced 22 missed tackles across just 95 carries last season,” wrote PFF’s Dalton Wasserman and Max Chadwick. “He should be able to capably give Bijan Robinson a break when needed.”
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Falcons Recap: Dwight Freeney’s prediction, Kyle Pitts’ ESPN ranking
