.jpg) Pittman with theIndianapolis Colts in 2020 | |||||||||
| No. 11 –Indianapolis Colts | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1997-10-05)October 5, 1997 (age 27) Bakersfield, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 223 lb (101 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Oaks Christian(Westlake Village) | ||||||||
| College: | USC (2016–2019) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2020: 2nd round, 34th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2024 | |||||||||
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Michael Pittman Jr. (born October 5, 1997) is an American professionalfootballwide receiver for theIndianapolis Colts of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football atUSC, where he was named a consensus second-teamAll-American as a senior, and was selected by the Colts in the second round of the2020 NFL draft.
Pittman grew up in Southern California and attendedValencia High School as a freshman, andOaks Christian School inWestlake Village, California, for his sophomore, junior, and senior year. As a senior, He caught 81 passes for 1,990 yards and 24touchdowns and was named first-teamAll-America byParade andMax Preps and participated in theAll-American Bowl.[1] In the final game of his high school career, Pittman caught 16 passes for 354 yards and five touchdowns.[2] Rated a four star recruit, Pittman initially committed to playcollege football for theUCLA Bruins. He re-opened his recruitment in the summer of 2015 and ultimately committed to play at theUniversity of Southern California over Oregon.[3]
Pittman enrolled at USC in the spring of 2016 after graduating from Oaks Christian a semester early. As a true freshman, he caught 6 passes for 82 yards on offense while returning two punts for 63 yards, four kickoffs for 31 yards, blocking punt and forcing a fumble onspecial teams. In his sophomore season, he had 23 receptions for 404 yards and two touchdowns with a punt returned for a touchdown and a blocked punt on special teams.[4] Pittman was named thePac-12 Conference Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 12 after returning a punt 72 yards for a touchdown against UCLA and was named first-team All-Conference as a special teamer.[5]
As junior, Pittman was named honorable mention All-Pac-12 Conference after posting 41 receptions for 758 yards with six touchdowns. Following the end of the season, Pittman considered forgoing his final season of eligibility to enter the2019 NFL draft but opted to return for his senior year after receiving a third-round grade from theNFL Draft Advisory Board.[6] Pittman caught 10 passes for 232 yards (5th-most in a game in USC history) and a touchdown in a 30–23 win over tenth-ranked Utah on September 20, 2019.[7] Pittman finished the season with 101 receptions for 1,275 yards and 11 touchdowns and was named first-team All-Pac-12 and a consensus second-team All-America selection.[8] He was also a finalist for theFred Biletnikoff Award and won the Pop Warner Award, given to the college senior with the biggest impact on and off the field.[9]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | Wonderlic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 223 lb (101 kg) | 32+1⁄2 in (0.83 m) | 9+1⁄4 in (0.23 m) | 4.52 s | 1.61 s | 2.68 s | 4.14 s | 6.96 s | 36.5 in (0.93 m) | 10 ft 1 in (3.07 m) | 13 reps | 29 |
| All values fromNFL Combine[10][11] | ||||||||||||
Pittman was selected by theIndianapolis Colts in the second round with the 34th overall pick in the2020 NFL draft.[12] Pittman made his professional debut on September 13, 2020, against theJacksonville Jaguars, catching two passes for ten yards in the 27–20 loss.[13] He was placed oninjured reserve on October 3, 2020, due tocompartment syndrome in his calf.[14] He was activated on October 31.[15] In Week 9 against theBaltimore Ravens, he caught 4 passes for 56 yard in a 24–10 loss to the Ravens. He had his first 100-yard game with seven receptions for 101 yards in the 34–17 victory against theTennessee Titans in Week 10 onThursday Night Football. He was the first Colts' rookie to have 100 receiving yards in a game sinceDonte Moncrief in 2014.[16] In Week 11 against theGreen Bay Packers, Pittman caught 3 passes for 66 yards and his first career touchdown reception on a 45 yard pass play in a 34–31 victory.[17][18] Pittman finished his rookie season with 40 catches for 503 yards.[19]
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In a Week 2 loss against theLos Angeles Rams, Pittman had a career game, hauling in 8 passes for 123 yards.[20] Pittman scored his second career touchdown in a 31–25 loss to the Ravens, finishing with 6 receptions for 89 yards.[21] Continuing to carve out a big role in the Colts' offense, Pittman hit 100 receiving yards for the third time in his career in a Week 7Sunday Night Football matchup against theSan Francisco 49ers. He caught 4 passes for 105 yards, including a touchdown catch that sealed the Colts' 30-18 win.[22][23] In the following week's overtime loss against the Titans, Pittman recorded 10 receptions on 15 targets for 86 yards, also scoring 2 touchdowns within a minute. His targets, receptions, and touchdowns were all career-highs.[24] In a Week 14 win against theNew England Patriots, Pittman was ejected in the third quarter for his involvement in a fight with Patriots safetyKyle Dugger.[25] On December 23, 2021, Pittman was named a2022 Pro Bowl alternate.[26] In the Colts' Week 17 loss against theLas Vegas Raiders, Pittman broke 1,000 receiving yards on the season and became the sixth Colts' pass catcher since 2000 to do so.[27]
In Week 1, Pittman caught eight passes for 97 yards and one touchdown, during a 31–21 loss to the Jaguars.[28] In a Week 13 victory over theTennessee Titans, Pittman hauled in his 314th career reception, breaking the Colts franchise record for the most catches in the first four years of a player's career.[29] One week later, he tied former Colts receiver and Pro Football Hall of FamerMarvin Harrison for the most consecutive games with at least eight receptions in Colts history.[30] In the Week 15 game against thePittsburgh Steelers, Pittman was taken out of the game due to a concussion after taking a hit fromsafetyDamontae Kazee, which led to Kazee being ejected from the game and a 15-yard roughness penalty being enacted on Pittsburgh.[31] He finished the season as the Colts leading receiver with 109 catches for 1,152 yards and four touchdowns. He was fifth in the league in catches and 14th in receiving yards.
On March 5, 2024, the Colts placed the franchise tag on Pittman.[32] On March 11, he signed a three-year, $71.5 million contract extension with $46 million guaranteed.[33]
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2020 | IND | 13 | 8 | 40 | 503 | 12.6 | 45 | 1 | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | IND | 17 | 17 | 88 | 1,082 | 12.3 | 57 | 6 | 5 | 44 | 8.8 | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2022 | IND | 16 | 16 | 99 | 925 | 9.3 | 28 | 4 | 3 | 30 | 10.0 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2023 | IND | 16 | 15 | 109 | 1,152 | 10.6 | 75 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 2024 | IND | 14 | 12 | 54 | 627 | 11.6 | 33 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 76 | 68 | 390 | 4,289 | 11.0 | 75 | 17 | 11 | 100 | 9.1 | 25 | 0 | 5 | 1 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2020 | IND | 1 | 1 | 5 | 90 | 18 | 32 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Career | 1 | 1 | 5 | 90 | 18 | 32 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Pittman is the son of former NFL running back andSuper Bowl championMichael Pittman and Kristin Randall. Pittman Sr. played on theTampa Bay Buccaneers 2002 championship roster.[34] His younger brother,Mycah Pittman, plays wide receiver for theUniversity of Utah.[35] Pittman also runs a YouTube channel with his wife, Kianna Pittman, called "Michael and Kianna". He produces two series on YouTube: "Gameday Vlogs" and "Path to the Draft".[36] He and his wife have two children together, a daughter and a son.[37] Pittman is aChristian.[38]
