The San Francisco 49ers suffered another significant blow even before news broke that quarterback Brock Purdy is expected to miss multiple games with a toe injury. On Tuesday, the team placed star tight end George Kittle on injured reserve (IR) after he sustained a hamstring injury in Sunday's win over the Seattle Seahawks.

Kittle exited in the second quarter at Lumen Field and did not return. In his absence, Jake Tonges stepped up with three receptions for 15 yards, including the game-winning touchdown that sealed the 49ers' Week 1 victory.


Speaking on Bay Area radio station KNBR Thursday morning, general manager John Lynch discussed the team's plan to replace Kittle, who will be sidelined for at least four games.

"Well, Brayden Willis is on our practice squad and has a good opportunity to be flexed up this week," Lynch explained. "Brayden's played a lot of football for us. Luke Farrell was a big priority this offseason, in free agency—one of the first moves we made. We wanted to do it to complement George, but also to have a guy in the event that George couldn't play, where he can handle a lot of the dirty work that goes on, and then as a capable receiver as well. I think the combination of those three."

Lynch emphasized just how much Kittle means to the 49ers organization.

"Look, when you're missing George Kittle, George is—I can't say enough about what he's meant," Lynch said. "I think he'll go down—in an organization that's got so many great players and Hall of Fame players—George will go down as one of the best to play at this franchise, and that's saying something at this place."

While the loss is significant, Lynch stressed that placing Kittle on IR was the smartest move for his long-term health.


"Of course it hurts when he's out, but those things happen, and George is already doing everything he can to get back," Lynch added. "He will miss four games because we did put him on IR. We felt like that was the appropriate action with the level of injury that he had.

"And then, it gives him the best opportunity to play the rest of the season healthy. Sometimes, if you come back too early, there's a higher risk at re-injuring. So, this gives him the best opportunity to be healthy the rest of the season."

For now, the 49ers could lean on a committee approach at tight end to fill the Kittle-sized void on offense.

"And as Jake took advantage of the opportunity, now these guys got to step up," Lynch said. "And those are huge shoes to fill. We're not asking anyone to go be George Kittle, but hopefully, as a combination of guys, we can come close to filling those shoes."



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