Photo via Fox News

Falcons star Kyle Pitts Sr predicts CFB players will unionize, says pro players returning to school is 'crazy'

Read the original at Fox News ↗
Cite

Canfield, R. (2026, September 16). Falcons star Kyle Pitts Sr predicts CFB players will unionize, says pro players returning to school is 'crazy'. Fox News. https://www.foxnews.com/outkick/falcons-star-kyle-pitts-sr-predicts-cfb-players-unionize-says-pro-players-returning-school-crazy

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Fox News · collected 2026-09-16 · by Ryan Canfield

Quick Summary

Kyle Pitts Sr., Atlanta Falcons star tight end, predicts that college football players will unionize due to the influence of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) compensation. He considers the idea of professional athletes returning to college football after NFL training camp as "crazy." Pitts believes that once players experience competition with adult professionals, they see it as a badge of honor and wouldn’t want to regress back to college status. He expects any potential union to be strong because of the significant influence NIL has given college athletes.
Written by AI on 2026-09-16, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Kyle Pitts Sr., an Atlanta Falcons star tight end with six seasons of NFL experience, predicts that college football players will unionize due to changes brought by Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rules. He spoke to OutKick, stating his belief that it's "crazy" for professional athletes to return to college football after participating in training camps. Pitts sees NIL legislation as a catalyst for empowering players with more rights and different opportunities. LSU had considered adding pro athletes to its roster but has since backed down from this idea. However, the broader discussion about player rights and unionization continues within college sports.

Written for “CFB Player Unionization Prediction” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 CFB Player Unionization Prediction
Sports · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

Nothing to compare against. No article is close enough to this one for the pipeline to have linked or judged the pair.
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
27
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
15%
4 of 27 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
69/100
Fox News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-16 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Fox News · 6161 article(s) · 11 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 11 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Ryan Canfield
65 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 After Texas Tech's loss to Cincinnati last week, head coach Joey McGuire benched quarterback Will Hammond for Thomas Castellanos, and the move paid off.
🔮 Since Josh Jacobs was arrested in May after an incident in which a woman claimed he threw her to the ground, records show several other women have come forward with allegations of their own against him.
🔮 Losing Payne for the rest of the season is a blow that the 1-4-1 Commanders might not be able to handle.
🔮 This New York Jets star will reportedly not be taking off anytime soon.
🔮 If you are having a bad day, just remember that you could always be a beer in the state of Wisconsin.
🔮 Thursday's game was Jacobs' second since coming off the commissioner's exempt list, which he had been on since August following a May altercation with his then-girlfriend, who said he threw her to the ground.
🔮 While no one can take that title away from Doug Heffernan, if Bichette helps lead the New York Mets to a World Series title, there will certainly be a debate.
🔮 Outside linebackers coach/run game specialist AC Carter’s responsibilities will expand to include coaching the defensive line, the Panthers announced.
🔮 The Milwaukee Brewers' first World Series title meant the world to their loyal fans, and would have meant the world to the late, beloved broadcaster Bob Uecker.
🔮 The decision to sign Tucker to the practice squad has drawn fierce criticism. While Toub said Butker is still the team’s kicker, that could change if his struggles continue.
Also by Ryan Canfield
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 65 articles by Ryan Canfield →

Topics

Atlanta Falcons FOX News LSU NFL NIL

Subjects

Pitts PERSON · 9× NIL ORG · 3× NFL ORG · 2× Atlanta Falcons ORG · 1× FOX ORG · 1× FOX News ORG · 1× Falcons ORG · 1× Kyle Pitts Sr. PERSON · 1× LSU ORG · 1× OutKick ORG · 1×

Narrative

(I) got equipped with my greens on, and that was pretty cool that, I thought I was just gonna wear my own clothes, but I got my shirt on, got everything on, and had a chance to go through various different, not obstacles, but like training stations of like IVs, weapons, and artillery
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-16
🔮 LSU may have backed down on its quest to add professional athletes to its roster, but the conversation is still raging on.

Claims (27 extracted, 4 hedged)

LSU may have backed down on its quest to add professional athletes to its roster, but the conversation is still raging on. uncertain
conversation → back → roster
Atlanta Falcons star tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. said he thought the concept of athletes returning to college football after participating in training camps is "crazy" and predicted college football players will unionize. asserted
players → say → camps
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. uncertain
page → contain → partners
If you sign up or place a wager, FOX News may be compensated. uncertain
News → sign → wager
This content was created by a team that works independently from the FOX newsroom. asserted
that → create → newsroom
"I do think it's crazy, but I also think it's something that it's gonna happen," Pitts told OutKick in a recent interview. asserted
Pitts → think → interview
"We have to kind of brace for it because with NIL I feel like it's giving people chances to have different say, and in my opinion, I think, you heard from me here first. asserted
you → have → me
I think there's gonna be a union in the college football next. asserted
I → think → football
Which, you know, players will be able to have different rights to do different things." asserted
players → know → things
Pitts, who has played in the NFL for six seasons, said going through training camp is like earning a badge of honor and returning to college football is a step back. " asserted
returning → play → football
I think once you go to the campground in NFL, I feel like it's a badge of honor of like, OK, I wouldn't want to go back to college and, whether things may have failed, whether you wanted them to (differently). uncertain
them → think → college
It's not up to you to just want to try and want to regress and go back to college and just take another year on college campus when you've now been in competition with grown men with families and such, and just want to go back to college with kids," Pitts said. asserted
Pitts → want → kids
Given how NIL has evolved, Pitts expects any potential union among college players to be strong. asserted
union → give → players
"I think it'll be pretty strong because the donors and the voice that they have, it's like they're getting a lot of things done and especially with, look at how NIL has transcended from the first day to now. asserted
NIL → think → day
It's like they're getting their money's worth in terms of name, image and likeness. asserted
they → get → name
So it's good to see and I just can't wait to see like how big it'll turn. asserted
it → see → ?
But I do think they'll have an opportunity to make it pretty well known to where the voices are heard," Pitts said. asserted
Pitts → think → opportunity
The 25-year-old signed a three-year, $53 million contract extension with the Falcons this offseason. asserted
old → sign → Falcons
He didn’t have any catches in the team’s 20-13 Week 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he has amassed 284 catches for 3,579 yards and 15 touchdowns in his career. asserted
he → have → career
In addition to training for the football season, Pitts spent a day experiencing the work of special operations forces through USAA, training with a pararescue unit at Moody Air Force Base in southern Georgia. asserted
Pitts → train → Georgia
Pitts was put to the test by using the Jaws of Life to extract people from vehicles and aircraft, practicing basic tactical medical training for combat care, and simulating rescue missions. asserted
Pitts → put → missions
The Pro Bowl tight end said it was an unforgettable experience. asserted
it → say → ?
"That was a life-changing day and it changed my perspective on really what people do in the armed forces. asserted
people → change → forces
(I) got equipped with my greens on, and that was pretty cool that, I thought I was just gonna wear my own clothes, but I got my shirt on, got everything on, and had a chance to go through various different, not obstacles, but like training stations of like IVs, weapons, and artillery asserted
everything → equip → IVs
," Pitts said. asserted
Pitts → say → ?
Use the hammer to try and to save someone in, in the mission out of the car and had to use different tools to pry him out and get the door open and, and most importantly, stay calm in the situation," Pitts continued. asserted
Pitts → use → situation
"Then learned about defense, covering the target and it was pretty cool to go through those different things with the crew that I did, and I'll never forget that day." asserted
I → learn → day
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support