The 49ers are making a late veteran free agent add. San Francisco is signing tight end Niles Paul, a source told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Terms of the deal weren’t immediately disclosed, although it’s safe to assume it’s a cheap short-term deal. This will be Paul’s ninth year in the league after he originally entered the NFL as a fifth-round pick of the Redskins back in 2011. He spent the next seven seasons in Washington before signing with the Jaguars last year. Paul has never played a huge role on offense, but he is capable of catching passes in a pinch.
By far his best season as a receiver came in 2014, when he had 39 receptions for 507 yards and a touchdown. He signed a two-year deal with Jacksonville last offseason, but was placed on injured reserve in October and then released in December. In six games with the Jaguars, he had ten catches for 98 yards.
Tight end Garrett Celek seems likely to miss some regular season time after undergoing back surgery, and it’s apparently possible he won’t be able to continue his career. As such, it makes sense why the 49ers were looking for some depth behind George Kittle. Paul played under 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan in Washington, so there’s some familiarity here.
I’m sure it’ll come down to him and Toilolo to see who can get the back-up job behind Kittle..
Very underrated TE. Made some nice plays with the Skins and would have been a much bigger part of that team if Jordan Reed didn’t show flashes of stardom