George Kittle is coming off his third career season surpassing 1,000 receiving yards. However, simply looking at his statistics doesn't provide a complete picture of what the tight end means to the San Francisco 49ers. Kittle earned Pro Football Focus' highest overall grade (87.6) among tight ends for his regular-season play last season. He also received the highest run-blocking grade (81.1) and the highest receiving grade (85.9) in his position group.
In comparison, the second-highest-graded tight end was Mark Andrews of the Baltimore Ravens, whose 80.0 overall grade was 7.6 points lower than Kittle's.
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Despite these impressive metrics, Kittle didn't earn the top spot in Jeremy Fowler's list for ESPN of the best tight ends. Fowler compiled the ranking after surveying nearly 80 league executives, coaches, and scouts. According to those around the league, Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs deserved the No. 1 spot for the second consecutive year. Kittle last held the top position in 2022.
"To accompany his status as the most well-rounded tight end, Kittle was the only player at his position to post a 1,000-yard season last year (his first since 2019)," Fowler wrote.
"When healthy, he's incredibly hard to bring down. His 15.7 yards per catch led all tight ends -- no one else surpassed 13.0 -- and his 7.4 yards after catch were tied for first at the position."
Kittle's 477 yards after the catch last season ranked third in the NFL, and 49ers quarterbacks had a 123.8 passer rating when targeting the All-Pro tight end, according to Pro Football Focus.
"Deep in-breaking routes, delays and boots and keepers -- he's just a problem with the ball in his hands," an NFL personnel director told Fowler. "He's more explosive [than Kelce] at this point, and being able to stay a little bit healthier this year helped him."
Fowler added, "Seven years in, Kittle is still considered the game's premier blocking tight end."