Baalke speaks with Mike Shanahan

The San Francisco 49ers are hoping to sign tight end George Kittle to a long-term extension. The two sides don't sound as though they are very close in the negotiation process, however. NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported earlier this week that the 49ers and Kittle's camp are not "particularly close on anything." Mike Silver of NFL Network seems to be hearing the same thing and on Friday provided an update on Kittle's contract situation. "There remains a pretty significant disconnect philosophically between the 49ers and George Kittle's camp. The 49ers believe they want to reset the tight end market and give him a great tight end deal.

The Seattle Seahawks' trade for safety Jamal Adams gives the San Francisco 49ers' division rival one of the players best suited to defend an offense that features running backs and tight ends in the passing game. The San Francisco 49ers have perhaps the league's top offensive mind in head coach Kyle Shanahan while the Seahawks have a defensive guru for a head coach in Pete Carroll. When the 49ers have the ball the two go toe-to-toe on play calls in a manner that can only be compared to a game of chess. Shanahan calls passing plays designed to get tight end George Kittle or one of the bevy of players who line up in the backfield open as much as any coach in the NFL. Just fewer than 50 percent of the 49ers' passing yards in 2019 went to a back or tight

Jimmy Garoppolo is entering the 2020 season with little or no concern about the ACL injury he suffered on September 23, 2018. There are other concerns, of course, like COVID-19 and the lack of an offseason's worth of practices, but his knee is not among them anymore. Garoppolo should still have one of the league's best defenses and a top rushing attack to support him. Those two things were key in last season's division championship, and Super Bowl run. Head coach Kyle Shanahan also pointed out that the defense and run game were crucial in Garoppolo's return from his injury, and helped take much of the pressure off the quarterback. "Our defense carried us at the beginning of the year," Shanahan told his friend, Chris Simms, on the