Rookie tight end Kyle Pitts has a lot of fans in and around the NFL. Detractors are always buzzing around, ready to say something mean into a loud microphone, but even those folks are hard to come by in this instance.

There's a consensus out there that Pitt's elite talent will translate well to the pro game after helping him dominate at Florida and earn the Falcons' No. 4 overall NFL draft pick.

That includes one of the best at Pitts' position. Elite 49ers tight end George Kittle heaped praise on the new Falcons weapon, making it clear he think Pitts is something special.

"I'm a Kyle Pitts fan," Kittle said on an appearance with Greg Olsen on the “Pardon My Take” podcast, promoting last week's Tight End University summit. "I saw last year, the dude just scores touchdowns like it's nothing. It's crazy. …

"With his athletic ability and his ability on the football field, he's going to be very [productive] in Atlanta. I wanted him to be the first tight end to go first. I mean, I get [why not], but I would've drafted him first."

Quarterbacks went 1, 2, 3, with Pitts the first non-signal caller taken in the 2021 NFL Draft. He was widely recognized as the best skill player in the draft, arguably among top few most talented regardless of position.

Kittle got to see Pitts work in person at TEU's tight end summit, which took place June 23-25 in Nashville. Kittle, Travis Kelce and Greg Olsen ran the position-specific event featuring more than 40 NFL players exchanging ideas and successful techniques.

Hayden Hurst also attended the summit, which took place the week after the Falcons wrapped their offseason program. He discussed the prospect leading up to the event and was definitely excited about working with so many talented tight ends.

The Falcons have two of them heading into the 2021 campaign, with Arthur Smith known for creatively using multiple tight-end sets. There should be opportunities for Pitts and Hurst to thrive while moving around the formation.

There's anticipation that could lead to big seasons for both of them.

There were some good photos and videos coming out of last week's summit, including this exchange between Kelce and Pitts.

There were several more off camera between the Falcons tight ends in attendance and some of the best at a difficult position. The Falcons should be better for them attending the event, which should be an annual thing, like other offseason summit established by other position groups.