George

Kittle

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan adds that Kittle “is in good spirits,” post-op. That is good to hear. Kittle, 32, ruptured his Achilles tendon in San Francisco’s Wild Card win over the Eagles. He is under contract through 2029, having signed a four-year extension in April 2025. The procedure was notably performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

Kittle, 32, has a long road to recovery ahead of him and could begin the 2026 season on the reserve/physically unable to perform list. He would be required to miss at least four games in that scenario. The veteran tight end finished the regular season as the half-PPR TE13, having missed Weeks 2-6 with a hamstring injury and Week 17 with an ankle injury. He caught 57-of-66 targets for 628 yards and seven touchdowns. The 49ers tend to keep injury information under wraps, but Kittle’s participation level in organized team activities, training camp and the preseason should provide actionable information for late-summer drafts. Entering his age-33 season and fighting with a mobility-limiting injury, he will be an extremely risky pick in 2026 drafts regardless of the offseason reporting.

Playing through an ankle injury of late, Kittle planted with extreme force in the second quarter and suffered what appeared to be a ruptured Achilles tendon. We, obviously, are not doctors, but these have become sadly easy to spot. Even were the worst-case scenario somehow avoided, Kittle is obviously done for the day and almost certainly for any potential 49ers Super Bowl run. The question then quickly becomes if the 32-year-old can be ready by next Week 1. At this stage of the offseason, it is not terribly likely, even though Achilles timelines have condensed in recent seasons. Jake Tonges is the next man up on Sunday and for however long San Francisco can stay alive.

Kittle got in limited work on Wednesday and Thursday and was spotted practicing again on Friday. He did play against the Seahawks in Week 18 so it’s not much of a surprise that he’ll be ready here. Kittle’s output will be paramount as the 49ers try to find a non-Christian McCaffrey trick over the middle against a fierce Eagles defense. He should make for a top-of-line DFS or Playoff Best Ball play at TE this week.

Kittle is on track to play, though it would be great to see him practice fully on Friday. The 49ers could be short-staffed when they face the Eagles this week. No. 1 WR Ricky Pearsall (knee/ankle) has not yet resumed practicing since aggravating the PCL sprain in his knee in Week 17.

While we would prefer to see Kittle begin the week with a full practice, we cannot complain about this outcome. Kittle made it through Week 18 without suffering any reported setbacks. His early-week participation puts him on track to play in the 49ers’ Wild Card Weekend game against the Eagles.

Limited mostly to little dumpoffs on bootlegs, Kittle actually gained 20 of his 29 yards on one of the few sideline balls that Brock Purdy was able to fit in on San Francisco’s best drive of the game. Kittle finishes the regular season with a 57/628 receiving line in just 11 starts. He’ll be available for San Francisco’s Wild Card game against an as-of-yet undetermined opponent next weekend.

Kittle was limited all week in practice, but it’s no surprise that the 32-year-old will go in a must-win game for the 49ers if they want to win the division, and they do. With no Ricky Pearsall, Kittle could be inline for an even bigger amount of targets against the tough Seattle defense.

Kittle remained limited throughout all three practices this week. We expect him to play through the ankle injury in a winner-take-all matchup against the Seahawks. While both teams are playoff-bound, the winner claims the NFC West title and the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed. Kittle is an elite TE1.

Kittle resumed practicing in a limited capacity on Tuesday. We do not yet know his participation level today, but he is certainly on the right side of questionable for Saturday’s game. The Seahawks field an elite defense, but Kittle should be started as a high-end TE1 all the same.