George Kittle fell to No. 3 in ’s annual tight end rankings this week, a one-spot drop from last year even as the San Francisco 49ers veteran stayed in the top tier. Brock Bowers held No. 1 for the second year in a row, and Trey McBride moved into No. 2.
The ranking matters because it tracks a player who still produced at a high level at 32. Kittle averaged 57.1 yards per game last season, scored seven touchdowns and posted 2.39 yards per route run. San Francisco had a 138.4 passer rating when targeting him, and he caught 82.6% of his passes, which is why one coach or executive still gave him a No. 1 vote.
That same panel also showed how wide the range of opinion has become. One coach or executive ranked Kittle as low as No. 8, even though an NFC executive called him the gold standard for blocking, running and catching. Another described him as still the most versatile, dominant, complete tight end when healthy. ’s list then ran through Sam LaPorta at No. 4, Tyler Warren at No. 5, Tucker Kraft at No. 6, Colston Loveland at No. 7, Kyle Pitts at No. 8, Mark Andrews at No. 9 and Travis Kelce at No. 10.
The drop was driven less by age than by availability. Kittle is working his way back from a late-season Achilles tear, and he missed a month of football last year. The concern is not whether he can still dominate. It is whether he can do it long enough to stay on the field. He remains one of only three players with six-plus receiving touchdowns in each of his past five seasons, alongside Marr Chase and Davante Adams, but durability has become the point voters could not ignore.
That matters now because ’s rankings land while Kittle is still aiming for a Week 1 return. Sports Info Solutions ranked him as the sixth-most valuable tight end last year, which fits the split in how evaluators see him: elite production when healthy, real uncertainty about how much of a season he can give. For San Francisco, the next answer is simple and important. If Kittle is ready for opening day, the ranking will look conservative. If he is not, No. 3 may end up feeling generous.
Aldon Smith, ancien joueur des San Francisco 49ers, est mort à 36 ans
