San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is a popular choice for a potential breakout player in 2018. As a rookie, he caught 43 passes for 515 yards and two touchdowns. Those numbers are comparable to other high-profile tight ends' rookie seasons. Names like Jordan Reed and Zach Ertz come to mind.
If you want to go a step further, you can compare his rookie numbers to those of four-time first-team All-Pro Rob Gronkowski, who had 42 receptions for 546 yards in 2010. Although, he got into the end zone eight more times than Kittle.
The 49ers tight end put up his impressive rookie numbers while playing through a slew of injuries. He dealt with hamstring, calf, hip, chest, back, elbow, and ankle injuries in 2017.
"I definitely wasn't feeling as good as I do now than I did last year," Kittle said in June. "Feeling really good now, so I'm just really looking forward to being on the field healthy."
A healthy year from Kittle could mean big things for the second-year tight and the 49ers offense. Pro Football Focus named Gronkowski as the best player on the analytics site's list of top 10 NFL tight ends for 2018. Kittle also made the list at No. 10.
Sam Monson wrote the following about Kittle:
"Another player that has flashed big-time potential, Kittle now has a quarterback to take advantage of his skill set in Jimmy Garoppolo. The 49ers rookie caught 43 of the 61 passes thrown his way last year (70.5 percent), and broke eight tackles with the ball in his hands, averaging 6.2 yards per reception after the ball ended up in his hands. He has speed to burn and the potential to vault himself up this list."
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