Falcons hire former UCLA star as running backs coach

The Falcons have hired Michael Pitre, the organization announced Monday night. Pitre spent the 2021 season as the running backs coach of the Chicago Bears and is set to take over the same role in Atlanta.

Pitre will fill the void that Desmond Kitchings left when he decided to become the offensive coordinator at Virginia at the end of the 2021 season.

2021 was Pitre’s first full season coaching in the NFL. Previously, Pitre began his career as a coach in the league as a scouting intern with New England in 2009. He was a member of the Kansas City Chief’s Bill Walsh Minority Fellowship coaching program in 2017.

While he only has one complete seasons as a coach in the league heading into 2022, Pitre has been coaching at the collegiate level for more than a decade prior to making the jump to the NFL last year.

He worked at Colorado (2012-2013) as a graduate assistant. His first opportunity as a running backs coach came in 2014 at Montana State — he stayed there until 2017. Then came his most notable college coaching gig, a three-year stint at Oregon State from 2018 to 2020. There, Pitre helped coach the Oregon State running back room to an average of 165.8 yards per game and 4.5 yards per carry through his three seasons coaching the tailbacks.

Pitre was given the opportunity to improve the Bears rushing game last season. Under the first year coach, Chicago’s rushing attack averaged 118.7 yards per game and tallied 13 carries that went 20 or more yards.

He takes over a running back room in Atlanta that was led by Cordarrelle Patterson, Mike Davis and Qadree Ollison last season. That may not be the case next season as Patterson, the Falcons leading rusher, is an unrestricted free agent. Davis is still under contract and Ollison is now a restricted free agent. Together the trio accounted for 1,226 yards and 10 touchdowns of Atlanta’s 1,451 and 11 total yards and touchdowns from last season.

Pitre will be tasked with not only maintaining the running back room in Atlanta but without the versatility of Patterson in the lineup, it could be a long season for Atlanta’s rushing attack. It won’t be the easiest job to have in the NFL next season, but if Pitre can salvage what will be left of the Falcons running back room — he’s well worth the hire.