George Kittle Issue Hangs Over the 49ers
Newsweek · C · trust 25/100
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. The San Francisco 49ers have so much going for them heading into the 2026 season. Nick Bosa is back. Fred Warner is back. Brock Purdy remains the quarterback, and Kyle Shanahan is still running the show. When this team is healthy and winning, there's a reason nobody wants to see them waiting on the other side of the field in January.
But, there's one big question hanging over the offense: George Kittle.
Kittle, of course, suffered an Achilles injury in January , and even if the veteran tight end is ready to go for Week 1, there's a pretty big question about what he'll look like when he gets there. Being cleared to play and being the same George Kittle are two very different things.
That's an important distinction for San Francisco because Kittle isn't just another piece of the offense. He's been one of Purdy's most trusted targets and one of the team's emotional engines. He's also the kind of player who tends to make his presence felt all over a game, whether he's catching a touchdown, dragging defenders along for extra yards or throwing himself into a block.
The 49ers have other concerns, too. The injury bug has already started showing up around the team, with even Shanahan dealing with an injury after a car accident. Meanwhile, Purdy's top four wide receivers for 2026 are all new to the roster, depending on how generously you want to define "new" when it comes to Deebo Samuel.
That's a lot of moving pieces. Still, this is the 49ers. They're an institution. If Purdy can keep the offense steady and Kittle eventually gets close to his old form, San Francisco has enough talent to make another deep January run. Bosa and Warner give the defense its teeth, and Shanahan has spent years proving he can navigate a long season. So, it's pretty much all smiles going into the new season.
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