George Kittle: 49ers ‘drastically different’ than early-season form in 2021

With the NFL Draft finished, every team essentially has their roster full as they approach their respective offseason programs, with a few late-offseason additions like the signing of James Bradberry to the Eagles this morning. The San Francisco 49ers had many concerns heading in to the offseason and addressed them via free agency and the draft, leaving them with another deep roster once again. But, top to bottom, is the current team better than the 2021 49ers? Quarterbacks: Same Last year, after the selection of Trey Lance with the third overall pick, the

It isn't easy to speculate on the development of Trey Lance during practices. Most of those criticizing the young quarterback were not watching him every day. One player who did watch Lance every day is his San Francisco 49ers teammate, George Kittle. The All-Pro tight end loves what he has seen from the now-22-year-old quarterback. Lance is expected to be the 49ers' starter come Week 1 of the upcoming season. However, the starter of the past four-and-a-half seasons, Jimmy Garoppolo, remains on the roster. Garoppolo is recovering from the shoulder surgery he underwent on March 8, so the 49ers can't trade the veteran quarterback until he is medically cleared to throw again. Kittle joined The Pat McAfee Show on Friday and was asked if Garoppolo remaining

The drama surrounding Deebo Samuel has died down a bit. Much of that is due to the San Francisco 49ers not granting his trade request ahead of the draft. By not doing so, the team declared that they believe the relationship with their do-everything wideout can be mended. George Kittle has been making the media rounds today. Of course, among the questions directed toward the All-Pro tight end involves the status of Samuel. After all, it's a storyline that dominated NFL headlines heading into the draft. "I actually talked to him a few days ago," Kittle said on The Pat McAfee Show. "Yeah, he seemed like he was in a good mood. He was hanging out with his kid, who he just had. ... I didn't ask about his contract, so we were just talking about other things,

Trey Lance seems to have a lot of doubters this offseason. Many are questioning his readiness to be the starting quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, the team that drafted him No. 3 overall last year. George Kittle is not one of Lance's doubters. Yes, the All-Pro tight end acknowledges that there could be some growing pains for the young quarterback this season. Lance, after all, started only two games as a rookie and played just 178 snaps. Kittle also realizes the talent level of the 49ers roster. That talent could carry the second-year passer should there be any early struggles. "If that's how it shakes down, and Trey Lance is the