George Kittle

George Kittle

31-Year-Old Tight EndTE
San Francisco 49ers
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Kittle quietly jumped back over the 1,000-yard threshold for the first time since 2019, leading all tight ends with 1,020 receiving yards last season. He also tied for second at the position with six touchdowns, making the most of pedestrian volume. With plenty of other mouths to feed in San Francisco -- namely Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel -- Kittle had to settle for 90 targets, tied for ninth among tight ends. Kittle’s robust average of 7.5 yards after the catch coupled with Brock Purdy’s accuracy allowed the tight end to produce a career-high 11.3 yards per target, following five straight years between 8.9 and 10.1 YPT. He also tied a career high with 16 games played, a mark Kittle previously reached in only 2018. From a health and efficiency perspective, 2023 was about as good as it gets for Kittle, though there is some risk of a down year in 2024 if he suffers regression in those areas and doesn't get more targets per game to make up for it. While Kittle is recovering from offseason core muscle surgery, McCaffrey and Samuel have their own checkered injury histories and Aiyuk is embroiled in contentious extension talks. There are a few avenues that could lead Purdy to pepper Kittle with more targets, but it's also possible those lanes don't open up until next offseason. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
#66.4
ADP
$Signed a five-year, $75 million contract with the 49ers in August of 2020.
Two-touchdown night in win
TESan Francisco 49ers
October 10, 2024
Kittle secured five of six targets for 58 yards and two touchdowns in the 49ers' 36-24 win over the Seahawks on Thursday night.
ANALYSIS
Kittle recorded a team-high amount of receptions and targets while finishing second in receiving yards. The talented tight end also recorded touchdown grabs of 10 and nine yards in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, extending his scoring streak to four games and pushing his season total to five TDs over five games. Kittle has no fewer than four receptions in any contest this season, encouragingly stable usage heading into a Week 7 home Super Bowl rematch against the Chiefs on Sunday, Oct. 20.
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NFL Stats
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Fantasy/Red Zone Stats
See red zone opportunities inside the 20, 10 and 5-yard lines along with the percentage of time they converted the opportunity into a touchdown.
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Advanced NFL Stats
How do George Kittle's 2024 advanced stats compare to other tight ends?
This section compares his advanced stats with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average. The longer the bar, the better it is for the player.
  • Air Yards Per Game
    The number of air yards he is averaging per game. Air yards measure how far the ball was thrown downfield for both complete and incomplete passes. Air yards are recorded as a negative value when the pass is targeted behind the line of scrimmage. All air yards data is from Sports Info Solutions and does not include throwaways as targeted passes.
  • Air Yards Per Snap
    The number of air yards he is averaging per offensive snap.
  • % Team Air Yards
    The percentage of the team's total air yards he accounts for.
  • % Team Targets
    The percentage of the team's total targets he accounts for.
  • Avg Depth of Target
    Also known as aDOT, this stat measures the average distance down field he is being targeted at.
  • Catch Rate
    The number of catches made divided by the number of times he was targeted by the quarterback.
  • Drop Rate
    The number of passes he dropped divided by the number of times he was targeted by the quarterback.
  • Avg Yds After Catch
    The number of yards he gains after the catch on his receptions.
  • % Targeted On Route
    Targets divided by total routes run. Also known as TPRR.
  • Avg Yds Per Route Run
    Receiving yards divided by total routes run. Also known as YPRR.
Air Yards Per Game
49.2
 
Air Yards Per Snap
0.88
 
% Team Air Yards
14.0%
 
% Team Targets
19.4%
 
Avg Depth of Target
7.0 Yds
 
Catch Rate
80.0%
 
Drop Rate
2.9%
 
Avg Yds After Catch
3.7
 
% Targeted On Route
25.5%
 
Avg Yds Per Route Run
2.07
 
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2024
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2022
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2020
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Snap Distribution / Depth Chart
Snap Counts
Snap %
San Francisco 49ers49ers 2024 TE Snap Distribution See more data like this | See last season's snap counts
#% of Team Snaps

27972%
16667%
14738%
10341%
215%
198%
41%
42%
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How often does George Kittle run a route when on the field for a pass play?
This data will let you see how George Kittle and the other tight ends for the 49ers are being used. Some tight ends may have a lot of snaps, but they're not that useful for fantasy purposes because they're not actually running routes. This data will help you see when this is the case.
George Kittle
137 routes   35 targets
← More Blocking
% Routes Run
More Receiving →
49%
51 routes   5 targets
35%
9 routes   0 targets
43%
0 routes   0 targets
0%
Receiving Alignment Breakdown
See where George Kittle lined up on the field and how he performed at each spot.
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This Week's Opposing Pass Defense
How does the Seahawks pass defense compare to other NFL teams this season?
The bars represents the team's percentile rank (based on QB Rating Against). The longer the bar, the better their pass defense is. The team and position group ratings only include players that are currently on the roster and not on injured reserve. The list of players in the table only includes defenders with at least 3 attempts against them.
SEA
@ Seahawks
Thursday, Oct 10th at 8:15PM
Overall QB Rating Against
90.4
 
Cornerbacks
77.3
 
Safeties
116.8
 
Linebackers
85.8
 
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2024 George Kittle Split Stats
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Measurables Review View College Player Page
How do George Kittle's measurables compare to other tight ends?
This section compares his draft workout metrics with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average.
Height
6' 4"
 
Weight
250 lbs
 
40-Yard Dash
4.52 sec
 
Vertical Jump
35.0 in
 
Broad Jump
132 in
 
Bench Press
18 reps
 
Hand Length
9.25 in
 
Arm Length
33.13 in
 
Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring George Kittle See More
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Box Score Breakdown: Week 5 Snaps, Routes, Personnel and Usage
7 days ago
Jerry Donabedian's weekly recap features a closer look at playing-time concerns for some talented players like Jaguars RB Travis Etienne and Steelers WR George Pickens.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
Kittle’s 2022 was a mixed bag. Though he missed only two games due to injury after being absent for 11 over the previous two seasons, Kittle’s catch rate dipped to 69.8 percent after three consecutive years over 75 percent. The 29-year-old tight end’s 51 yards per game marked his lowest average since his rookie season in 2017, but he papered over that deficiency with a career-high 11 touchdowns, blowing away his previous best of six. Seven of those touchdowns came in the last four games of the season, all of which were started by rookie QB Brock Purdy. Kittle’s chemistry with Purdy suggests the uptick in scoring can’t entirely be written off as an outlier, but Purdy may not be available to start the season after tearing his UCL in the playoffs, so San Francisco could open the campaign with Trey Lance or Sam Darnold under center. The 49ers have plenty of mouths to feed, with Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Christian McCaffrey all having averaged more targets per game than Kittle in 2022, so Kittle’s boom-or-bust yardage totals (five games over 80 and eight games under 30 last season) may just be the new norm. If that’s the case, Kittle will need to keep finding the end zone regularly to maintain a spot in the upper echelon of fantasy tight ends.
Kittle is extremely effective on a per-game basis, but injuries have taken off some of the shine. After averaging 86.5 catches for 1,215 yards and five touchdowns between the 2018 and 2019 seasons, Kittle was limited to just 22 of a possible 33 appearances the last two seasons, bothered mostly by knee, foot and calf injuries. The last two required stints on injured reserve, though Kittle wound up sitting out only three games last season after missing half the 2020 campaign. Considering he got off to a slow start and attempted to play hurt a couple times last season, Kittle’s top-6 numbers among tight ends in catches (71) and receiving yards (910) don’t look too bad at all. He also did not lose any of his signature ability to elude defenders after the catch, finishing third behind Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews among tight ends and 17th among all players with 465 yards after the catch. The star tight end rarely comes off the field, and his toughness and blocking are just as important for San Francisco’s smash-mouth style as his pass-catching and YAC abilities. Kittle has thrived despite lackluster quarterback play, so San Francisco’s uncertainty under center this season is unlikely to impact his performance much. It is worth noting, however, he was targeted only twice in Trey Lance’s lone start for which Kittle was available last season.
Kittle entered last season with a five-year, $75 million extension in hand, hoping to take aim at his NFL single-season tight end record of 1,377 receiving yards. Instead, it was Travis Kelce who broke the record, while an MCL sprain and a foot fracture limited Kittle to eight games for the 49ers. Kittle played at least 14 games in each of his first three NFL seasons, but that was largely on account of playing through injuries rather than avoiding them. Even last year, Kittle was fortunate to play as many games as he did, returning from the foot fracture to total 11 receptions for 160 yards in Weeks 16 and 17. He finished the season with only two touchdowns, but his numbers otherwise prorate to 96 catches for 1,268 yards — right in line with preseason expectations. It was Kittle's third consecutive season averaging more than 75 receiving yards per game, so it is his health that has been the key variable for fantasy purposes, while the athleticism, skill and target volume have been constants. Part of the issue is simply Kittle's physical playing style, subjecting himself to frequent, high-speed collisions as both a blocker and ballcarrier. Of course, that's also part of what makes him so great, and part of what keeps him on the field for all three downs.
Kittle is rapidly building a case as one of the better fifth-round draft picks in NFL history, ripping off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons at a position where only two or three players reach that mark each year. He couldn't quite match his tight end yardage record from 2018, but Kittle was the furthest thing from a slouch last season, ranking 12th among pass catchers in yards per game (75.2) and 14th in yards per target (9.8). His average target depth dropped from 7.3 yards to 5.7, and while there was a corresponding dip in yards per reception, Kittle's catch rate shot up to elite territory at 79.4 percent. He may not get the same downfield opportunities as Travis Kelce, but Kittle is even better than his TE counterpart at picking up yards after the catch, and the 26-year-old also had lower drop rates in both 2018 and 2019. Kittle's greatest weaknesses - at least from a fantasy standpoint - are actually strengths from the 49ers' perspective. He plays too hard, he blocks too much and sometimes he can be too invested in tasks that don't produce stats. Kittle has missed only three games in three seasons, but he's played through a torn shoulder labrum, fractured rib cartilage and a bone spur in his ankle. That probably makes Kelce the safer TE1 choice, but Kittle is the one with superhuman talent.
It wasn't just that Kittle had a career season, he had a season that was almost too good to be true. And it's hard to know how to react to that type of year. Kittle and Travis Kelce played ping-pong with the single-season yardage record for a tight end; when the smoke cleared, Kittle won. That's an incredible accomplishment for any player, but then underscore that Kittle did it playing most of his season with undrafted quarterback Nick Mullens (Kelce, meanwhile, worked with the NFL MVP). The 49ers also had pedestrian wideouts; every late-season opponent took to the field with the primary goal of stopping Kittle. And let's not forget Kittle was scarcely used at Iowa, catching just 48 passes in four college seasons. The 49ers need to prioritize Kittle more in the scoring area. He only had five touchdowns despite last year's banner season, and three came from long distance (43, 82, 85 yards). The other two spikes were from the 10- and 5-yard line. It wasn't for a lack of trying, as Kittle was fourth among tight ends in red-zone targets. A full season of Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback could go a long way toward fixing this deficiency. Garoppolo, in a lot of ways, is the elephant in the San Francisco huddle. Can he be trusted to play a full season? Have we seen enough of him to definitively conclude he's a difference-maker? How you feel about Garoppolo goes a long way toward solving your Kittle stance in 2019.
Tight end is a hard position, especially for rookies. Kittle's first-year haul might not seem like much, but since the merger, only 16 rookie tight ends have produced more catches than Kittle's 43. His production got a modest bump when Jimmy Garoppolo took over: five games, 15-224-1, a catch rate of 78.9 percent. And now we get to dig into the growth seasons for a typical tight end. Kittle is a better athlete than blocker, and that's fine with us. At 6-4, 250, he blazed a 4.52 40 at the 2017 combine, also displaying explosiveness with strong marks in the vertical jump (35 inches) and broad jump (132 inches). Kittle tied for fifth among tight ends with 16 red-zone targets last year, but most of those were from quarterbacks far worse than Garoppolo (hence the modest TD total). The 49ers have a lot of receiving turf to be claimed, following a season in which no player had more than 59 receptions or four TD catches. Garoppolo, of course, didn't start the year with the team. Make sure Kittle is prominent on your list of potential breakout players. Heck, he could be a cheaper way to get Garoppolo and Kyle Shanahan exposure, if you miss on some of the buzzier targets. Kittle did suffer a separated shoulder in the first week of the preseason, but the 49ers expect him to be back for their regular-season opener.
Kittle could be in store for a bigger role than he thought his rookie year after the Niners sent incumbent No. 1 tight end Vance McDonald to the Steelers in an August trade. The fifth-round draft pick possesses surprising athleticism (4.52 speed) for a 6-4, 247-pound blocking tight end and could carve out a solid role as a check-down option for QB Brian Hoyer.
More Fantasy News
Cleared for Thursday night
TESan Francisco 49ers
October 9, 2024
Kittle (ribs) doesn't have a designation for Thursday's game at Seattle, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
ANALYSIS
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Puts in limited practice
TESan Francisco 49ers
Ribs
October 8, 2024
Kittle (ribs) will be a limited participant in Tuesday's practice, Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
ANALYSIS
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Still nursing rib injury
TESan Francisco 49ers
Ribs
October 7, 2024
Kittle was a limited participant on the 49ers' practice estimate Monday, Matt Barrows of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
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Extends TD streak to three games
TESan Francisco 49ers
October 6, 2024
Kittle (ribs) finished with eight receptions (12 targets) for 64 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 24-23 loss to Arizona.
ANALYSIS
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Suiting up Sunday
TESan Francisco 49ers
October 6, 2024
Kittle (ribs) is listed as active Sunday versus the Cardinals, Lindsey Pallares of the 49ers' official site reports.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Expected to play Week 4
TESan Francisco 49ers
September 27, 2024
Kittle, who missed the Week 3 loss to the Rams with a hamstring injury, is expected to play in Sunday's Week 4 matchup against the Patriots, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Kittle was able to put in limited practices Wednesday and Thursday before returning to a full session Friday. With no apparent setbacks, Kittle will likely assume a normal workload, and he could be set for a bump in his usual target tally if Deebo Samuel misses another game due to a calf injury.
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