The 49ers and tight end George Kittle are in agreement on a five-year, $75MM extension, as Ian Rapoport and Michael Silver of NFL.com report (via Twitter). Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports that $30MM is guaranteed at signing — including an $18MM signing bonus — and there are $40MM in total guarantees (Twitter link).
We had been hearing that this deal was expected to come together shortly, and that it would completely reset the tight end market. And it has done just that, as Kittle’s $15MM average annual value far outpaces the $10.5MM figure that Austin Hooper received just this year from the Browns. It also represents something of a halfway point between the former top of the TE market and the top of the WR market.
Still, given Kittle’s dominance as a receiver and blocker, there was plenty of speculation that his payday would come in a little higher. Indeed, some were projecting a six-year pact worth close to $100MM, but the 49ers managed to give out a historic contract while staying in their comfort zone. Kittle’s deal places him 12th among all pass catchers, as Matt Barrows of The Athletic observes (via Twitter), though the guaranteed money is definitely a win for Kittle.
Since 2017, Kittle has recorded 2,945 receiving yards, the most of any tight end in his first three seasons. And, since 2018, Kittle’s had 1,464 yards after the catch, more than any other player in the league not named Christian McCaffrey. He earned his second straight Pro Bowl bid in 2019 and his first (but probably not only) First Team All-Pro selection. The advanced metrics love him just as much, as the Iowa product graded out as Pro Football Focus’ highest-rated player at any position last year.
In short, the 26-year-old (27 in October) has established himself as one of the best offensive weapons in the game, and with WR1 Deebo Samuel expected to miss time with a foot injury, San Francisco may be leaning on Kittle even more heavily to start the 2020 season. The team may now turn its attention to other 2021 free agents like Kyle Juszczyk and Richard Sherman.
Congratulations to Mr. Kittle and happy to have him in a 49ers uniform for the next five years, but I’m a little surprised it wasn’t higher. Guess I’m not an agent/GM for a reason.
Caps going down next year by at least 20 mill if not more.
I’m surprised the 49ers gave up 15 mill a year knowing this.
Good on Kittle but this could hurt the 49ers ability to field a contender when guys leave.
Dont care, you have to keep Kittle. He is part of your core and irreplaceable. PLUS, he came in as a later round pick, worked his tail off, and has made himself into the best all-around TE in the game.
As a franchise, you reward that, you reward his hard work, his leadership skills on and off the field, and you reward the way he has bought in as a team first kind of guy..
If you don’t, you risk sending a bad message, you risk losing your best player, and you risk losing your locker room…
49ers HAD TO GET THIS DONE!! And to get it done at a good rate, considering what all he brings to the table, this is a HUGE WIN-WIN!!
49ers need to make sure they can field a competitive team and keep Garappolo upright.
That should be the 49ers and any teams primary goals. Field a contender and protect the most valuable piece of your team long term.
Calling Jimmy G the most valuable player on the team is one opinion. There are others.
Agreed bravesfan.
I don’t rate TE’s any higher than most, but SF are a contender as long as this one guy is out there, as absurd as that may sound.
Sounds like a bargain to me.
They guaranteed him more upfront in exchange for less overall. The signing bonus % is relatively higher among Niners contracts.
Very nice extension he’s worth all of that
Definitely worth all of that
Deserves more he’s so good he’s their wr1 and blocks like a tackle
Basically two guaranteed years with the possibility to go to two and a third guaranteed. The usual, nothing to see here…..
Thought he would get more.
‘Kittle was set to earn a paltry $2.13MM salary in 2020,’
How much do you get paid to write articles?
He meant relative to other players of his talent level. Stop being such a smart***
nancy would call it crumbs
How much would you like to get paid to stop commenting like a frustrated little pissant on articles?
I’d take a paltry $2.13 million to shut up. How about you?
It is paltry, relative to being PFF’s #1 overall player in the NFL…
Nothing to see here, move on..
Then stop commenting on my posts. If you don’t like them, move on.
I will take $1.5 and forget my password for this site. I just want to take as much of SFs money as possible and still undercut you. Forgetting the password is kind of a lie. I already forgot it. Lol
A very savvy series of moves by the San Francisco front office. Saved money for Kittle by trading Buckner from a position of strength. They used the draft pick they acquired to select a cheap replacement and now they have the most well-balanced tight end under contract in his prime. They didn’t break the bank either, so they can re-sign either Sherman or Williams and extend Bosa when necessary
Yeah, that Bosa deal is going to be something absurd..I hope they’re able to get it done when the time comes..Because they have to keep these two as the leaders of the OFF and DEF moving forward..
One of their most underrated players coming up for free agency is K’Waun Williams…Yes, he is only a SLOT DB, but he is excellent against the run, he is a good blitzing option, and he just makes big impact plays..They should be able to keep him at a reasonable price, hopefully because he is so underrated..
Their secondary moving forward is their biggest question mark. If they’re going to continue being a division winner, and fighting for a playoff spot, theyre going to need to figure out what to do with their secondary. Moving forward, basically everyone except for Ward is a free agent…
Tartt is huge for this defense, as everyone saw when he went down last season, but the 49ers cannot afford to keep everyone. So, will they be able to keep Sherman for another year, lock-up Moseley and K’Waun, AND then lock-up Tartt as well!?! I highly doubt it…
Their pass rush, and their versatile LBs help them in coverage tremendously, but they cannot do it all by themselves. For Saleh’s DEF to truly work, they need versatile DBs and interchangeable safeties, and his scheme gets a huge boost with one lockdown boundary CB..Hopefully, they’re able to figure it out, but it isnt going to be easy..
However, using the draft and free agency, I think they’ll be able to put together a solid secondary. I think Sherman will come back for a decent 1yr deal, Moseley could get locked up to a team friendly deal, and then I think they will end up losing one of Williams or Tartt, but they should be able to replace whichever they lose via the draft and/or free agency, and again they will go those routes for more depth..