The 49ers have gotten some positive news on tight end George Kittle.
Per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, Kittle suffered a mid-to-low ankle sprain during Monday night’s victory over the Colts.
That means he should not be out long-term with the injury, if he misses any time at all.
Kittle told reporters postgame that he didn’t believe he had suffered a high-ankle sprain in the second quarter. Kittle also felt like the play was a hip-drop tackle.
Kittle finished the Week 16 win with seven catches for 115 yards with a touchdown. In 10 games this season, Kittle has caught 52 passes for 599 yards with seven TDs.
49ers quarterback Brock Purdy put on a show on Monday night against the Colts, tossing five touchdowns in the 48-27 victory.
San Francisco is now 6-1 in games Purdy has started this season, which is part of why the club is in a position to potentially grab the NFC’s No. 1 seed and a coveted bye for the first round of the postseason.
Purdy’s success isn’t anything new, with left tackle Trent Williams explaining part of what’s set up the quarterback’s strong performances after Monday’s game.
“You know, when you’re in that huddle, there’s only one voice speaking, right? And you’ve got 10 grown men staring at you,” Williams said in his press conference. “And you can’t fool grown men, right? The confidence that he has in that huddle no matter what phase of the game, those long play-calls, just getting everybody where they need to be, I mean — from A to Z he does it at a really high level.
“I say it all the time — he’s a god send, man, for us to get him where we got him. Obviously, he’s getting what he deserves now. But … he’s still the same guy. Still the same guy from his rookie year. He’s just a baller, man.”
Purdy finished Monday night’s victory 25-of-34 for 295 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. In his seven games this year, Purdy has completed 68.8 percent of his throws for 1,737 yards with 17 touchdowns and eight picks.
The AFC and NFC rosters for the 2026 Pro Bowl Games were announced on Tuesday morning.
Votes from fans, coaches and players were used to select the teams. Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce led the fan vote and was named to his 11th Pro Bowl. Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, and Bears safety Kevin Byard were the other leaders in that vote, but Williams is not on the initial NFC roster.
Chargers tackle Joe Alt did make the AFC roster despite playing in only six games before being shut down with an ankle injury.
Three teams — the Jets, Saints and Vikings — have no Pro Bowlers. The Broncos, 49ers, Ravens, and Seahawks each had six players selected.
The Pro Bowl Games will be held in San Francisco on February
The full rosters appear below with starters indicated by an asterisk.
AFC
Quarterback: Josh Allen*, Buffalo Bills; Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers; Drake Maye, New England Patriots
Running back: De’Von Achane, Miami Dolphins; James Cook, Buffalo Bills; Jonathan Taylor*, Indianapolis Colts
Fullback: Patrick Ricard*, Baltimore Ravens
Wide receiver: Ja’Marr Chase*, Cincinnati Bengals; Nico Collins*, Houston Texans; Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens; Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos
Tight end: Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders*; Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
Offensive tackle: Joe Alt*, Los Angeles Chargers; Garett Bolles*, Denver Broncos; Dion Dawkins, Buffalo Bills
Offensive guard: Quinn Meinerz*, Denver Broncos; Quenton Nelson*, Indianapolis Colts; Trey Smith, Kansas City Chiefs
Center: Creed Humphrey*, Kansas City Chiefs; Tyler Linderbaum, Baltimore Ravens
Defensive end: Will Anderson Jr.*, Houston Texans; Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas Raiders; Myles Garrett*, Cleveland Browns
Interior linemen: Zach Allen, Denver Broncos; Chris Jones*, Kansas City Chiefs; Jeffrey Simmons*, Tennessee Titans
Outside linebacker: Nik Bonitto*, Denver Broncos; Tuli Tuipulotu, Los Angeles Chargers; T.J. Watt*, Pittsburgh Steelers
Inside/middle linebacker: Azeez Al-Shaair, Houston Texans; Roquan Smith*, Baltimore Ravens
Cornerback: Christian Gonzalez, New England Patriots; Derek Stingley Jr.*, Houston Texans; Pat Surtain II*, Denver Broncos; Denzel Ward, Cleveland Browns
Free safety: Jalen Ramsey*, Pittsburgh Steelers
Strong safety: Kyle Hamilton*, Baltimore Ravens; Derwin James Jr., Los Angeles Chargers
Long-snapper: Ross Matiscik*, Jacksonville Jaguars
Punter: Jordan Stout*, Baltimore Ravens
Place-kicker: Cameron Dicker*, Los Angeles Chargers
Return specialist: Chimere Dike*, Tennessee Titans
Special-teamer: Ben Skowronek*, Pittsburgh
NFC
Quarterback: Matthew Stafford*, Los Angeles Rams; Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks; Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
Running back: Jahmyr Gibbs*, Detroit Lions; Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers; Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
Fullback: Kyle Juszczyk*, San Francisco 49ers
Wide receiver: Puka Nacua*, Los Angeles Rams; Jaxon Smith-Njigba*, Seattle Seahawks; George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys; Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions
Tight end: Trey McBride*, Arizona Cardinals; George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers
Offensive tackle: Penei Sewell*, Detroit Lions; Tristan Wirfs* Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers
Offensive guard: Tyler Smith*, Dallas Cowboys; Joe Thuney*, Chicago Bears; Chris Lindstrom, Atlanta Falcons
Center: Drew Dalman*, Chicago Bears; Cam Jurgens, Philadelphia Eagles
Defensive end: Aidan Hutchinson*, Detroit Lions; Micah Parsons*, Green Bay Packers; DeMarcus Lawrence, Seattle Seahawks
Interior linemen: Jalen Carter*, Philadelphia Eagles; Leonard Williams*, Seattle Seahawks, Quinnen Williams, Dallas Cowboys
Outside linebacker: Brian Burns*, New York Giants, Jared Verse*, Los Angeles Rams; Byron Young, Los Angeles Rams
Inside/middle linebacker: Jack Campbell*, Detroit Lions; Zack Baun, Philadelphia Eagles
Cornerback: Jaycee Horn*, Carolina Panthers; Devon Witherspoon, Seattle Seahawks
Free safety: Kevin Byard III*, Chicago Bears; Antoine Winfield Jr., Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Strong safety: Budda Baker*, Arizona Cardinals
Long-snapper: Jon Weeks*, San Francisco 49ers
Punter: Tress Way*, Washington Commanders
Placekicker: Brandon Aubrey*, Dallas Cowboys
Return specialist: Rashid Shaheed*, Seattle Seahawks
Special-teamer: Luke Gifford*, San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers clinched a playoff spot before they took the field on Monday night, but that didn’t take any wind out of their sails against the Colts.
Brock Purdy’s five touchdown passes paved the way to a 48-27 win that keeps the 49ers in the running for another prize. If they beat the Bears and the Seahawks in their two remaining games, the 49ers will have the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the postseason.
After Monday’s win, left tackle Trent Williams said that the team is not putting that possibility ahead of the task at hand.
“It’s not end-all be-all, but it’s definitely important,” Williams said, via 49ersWebzone.com. “We got two playoff teams coming up, so I’m just more excited to see how we match up. Can we continue to play the football that we’re proud of, the football that we played tonight? Because it’s a great chance that we could see one of those two teams in the playoffs, as well. So, the number one seed, obviously it’s a path to that, but it’s not the one thing in our mind right now, especially not mine.”
The 49ers’ offseason changes led to doubts that they’d be in the playoff mix this year and injuries to players like Nick Bosa and Fred Warner during the season didn’t do much to change that outlook. The team has just kept winning, however, and they’re a couple of weeks away from making the road to the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium run through Levi’s Stadium.
During his big game in Monday night’s win over the Colts, 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season. In the final two weeks of the season, he may also eclipse 1,000 receiving yards.
McCaffrey currently has 1,039 rushing yards and 849 receiving yards this season. That puts him in range to record just the fourth season of 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in NFL history.
McCaffrey is already part of that elite club, having accomplished it in 2019 with the Panthers. The other players to do it were Roger Craig of the 49ers in 1985 and Marshall Faulk of the Rams in 1999.
Although the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award almost always goes to quarterbacks, McCaffrey may get some first-place MVP votes if he tops the 1,000-yard mark in both rushing and receiving while the 49ers get the No. 1 seed in the NFC, which is within their reach. The 49ers’ success can’t be attributed solely to quarterback Brock Purdy because Purdy missed half the season and the offense still ran smoothly with backup Mac Jones. That gives McCaffrey a case that he’s the real engine driving the 49ers’ offense to the playoffs.
