Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts believes NFL players did not respond in the best way possible to a recent tragedy. Pitts didn’t hold back while reacting to the turnout at the celebration of life for late NFL wide receiver Rondale Moore.
Kyle Pitts Shares Emotional Message After Rondale Moore’s Celebration of Life
On February 21st, 2026, wide receiver Moore passed away. Police later confirmed that Moore passed due to a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Several players went to social media to express their condolences and sadness after hearing the news.
JJ Watt, who played with Moore when Moore was with the Arizona Cardinals, tweeted out, “Can’t even begin to fathom or process this. There’s just no way.” Watt and Moore are famous for having a somewhat viral interaction when both were in Arizona, where Watt helped Moore after a training camp session.
J.J. McCarthy, who is the Minnesota Vikings quarterback, tweeted out, “My prayers go out to Rondale and his family. Rest in paradise, my brother.”
While there was immense sadness with the tweets, there was also some criticism and some discussion about the NFL’s role in players’ mental health.
One example of this was when former defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko tweeted out a very lengthy statement criticizing and saying that “NFL teams come out here and post these mental health awareness posts talking about they care about players ..All they care about is what you bring to the table when it’s game day. ”
So, after the news about Rondale Moore, many players took to social media to express their opinions. However, in Kyle Pitts’s opinion, many of those words were just words and lacked action.
Pitts attended Moore’s celebration of life. Pitts then posted on his Instagram story, “Crazy how only about 6, maybe 7 of your teammates in the NFL showed up for you today smfh. All that talk about fake emotion, and nobody wants to show up to lay you to rest. Just at a loss of words.”
Pitts and Moore were both on the Falcons during the 2024 season. Moore did not play in any regular-season games due to injuries, but he was still on the squad. When Moore passed, Pitts posted the following on Instagram.
From the post, Pitts was close to Moore, which explains his frustration that more players didn’t show up. Now, Pitts did not clarify who did not show up and who did, but Pitts ‘ point is that NFL players were more talk than show.
