San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle recently signed a five-year, $75 million extension that will keep him in the Bay Area through the 2025 season. I recently shared the details of the contract, as reported by Over The Cap, here. If you read through that, other than the significantly lower salary-cap hit in 2021, something else about the details probably immediately stood out.
Kittle will receive a $10 bonus during that first year of the extension.
That is not a typo.
Why $10? While the reason hasn't officially been revealed, David Lombardi of The Athletic has a theory.
"Maybe it's a joke by refund, an homage to Kittle's early days, when 49ers tight ends coach Jon Embree would fine his rookie tight end $10 for every time he ran out of bounds instead of taking on a would-be tackler," wrote Lombardi.
After signing his record deal, one that makes him the highest-paid tight end in football, Kittle expressed how happy he was to have the negotiations behind him. It allows him to focus on his brand of punishing play while knowing his future is financially secure.
"Now, I can go onto a football field and not have any worries about anything," Kittle said on August 15. "I don't have to worry about getting injured. I don't have to really worry about anything. I can just go out there and focus on football.
"I have the best job in the world. I get paid to play football. Now, I'm taken care of, and my family's taken care of. Now, I can just focus on that.
"I don't have to worry about money. I don't have to worry about anything else. I can just go out there and play football and run through someone's face, and I'm really excited about that."
Added Lombardi: "Kittle wants to play with that unbridled ebullience that he first embraced when he got sick of those $10 fines, and this contract should allow for that."