Falcons rookie TE Kyle Pitts to wear No. 8

Falcons rookie Kyle Pitts takes advantage of the new NFL jersey number rule and selects No. 8.

The Falcons used their No. 4 overall selection Thursday night to draft Florida tight end Kyle Pitts. While the pick wasn’t a total surprise, as Pitts was the running favorite, we didn’t know what number he would wear in the NFL until Friday morning when the team announced it over Twitter.

Pitts will take advantage of the new single-digit rule and wear No. 8. The NFL’s relaxed its jersey number restrictions during this offseason, expanding number options for the majority of skill position players.

Pitts wore No. 84 at Florida — the same number as Falcons legend Roddy White.  However, Atlanta’s new kick returner, WR/RBCordarrelle Patterson, took the No. 84 when he signed with the team a few weeks ago. Patterson has his own clothing line associated with the No. 84, so that wasn’t much of a surprise either.

Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley had the option go back to the No. 3 he wore at Alabama but decided against it. Ridley said he’d wear No. 18 “til the end” over Twitter.

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