George Kittle DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

San Francisco Chronicle's Eric Branch writes that the San Francisco 49ers and star tight end George Kittle have been in talks about a contract extension early this offseason. The 31-year-old is heading into the final year of his current deal in 2025 after a strong 2024 campaign in which he caught 78 passes on 94 targets for 1,106 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in 15 starts. The production was all the more impressive after he revealed that he played through cracked ribs for much of the season, and he also missed two games with a hamstring ailment. Kittle's 1,106 receiving yards and eight touchdowns were both the second-best marks of his career. He was the TE1 overall in fantasy, with only Brock Bowers and Trey McBride besting him in total yardage. Regardless of whether he gets a contract extension from the Niners (he likely will), Kittle will be a top-five fantasy TE in drafts this fall.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (ankle, hamstring) was outproduced by his backup Eric Saubert during the team's 47-24 loss to the Cardinals in Arizona. Kittle caught two of three targets for 27 yards. The affable team captain was questionable and ultimately activated but had his snap count reduced in the meaningless game. Most likely, the 49ers organization was showing appreciation to Kittle by giving him the start since he has a $500,000 per-game roster bonus in his contract. Kittle finishes an excellent season as the overall half-PPR TE2, behind only Las Vegas Raiders rookie Brock Bowers and just ahead of Arizona's Trey McBride. He amassed 78 receptions, 1,106 yards, and eight touchdowns in 2024. He was hyper-efficient this year, setting career marks in catch percentage and yards per target. Kittle will enter his age-32 season in 2025 once again as a fantasy TE1 with San Francisco.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (ankle, hamstring) is officially active for Sunday's Week 18 contest against the Arizona Cardinals. He had been listed as questionable. Although the 49ers have already been eliminated from playoff contention, Kittle will be suiting up for the season finale. Quarterback Brock Purdy (elbow), however, won't play, which means Kittle will be catching passes from Joshua Dobbs. The 31-year-old ranks second among tight ends in fantasy points this season, and he enters the season finale as a high-end TE1.