San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle has missed time during the NFL preseason due to an injury, but we now have developments that he is likely to see the field soon.
What We Know About George Kittle’s Latest Injury
Back on Aug. 10, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan shared that Kittle “had an adductor strain last week, so he won’t be able to go this whole week.” Kittle didn’t participate in joint-practice sessions against the Las Vegas Raiders and hasn’t appeared in either of the 49ers’ preseason games.
Adductor strains typically take two weeks to heal but can take up to four months, depending on the severity of the injury. Luckily for the 49ers, the latest information is good news, with Kittle expected back to training ahead of the team’s third preseason game. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the prognosis doesn’t seem too serious.
Updating the media on Aug. 20, Shanahan said that guys that he expected back “at some time this week for practice” included Kittle. Other names expected back for the 49ers this week are Kalia Davis, Dre Greenlaw, Drake Jackson, Javon Kinlaw, and Elijah Mitchell.
San Francisco plays their final preseason game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday, Aug. 26. Despite Kittle returning to practice this week, it seems unlikely that the 49ers would put him into this game as they continue to get him ready for Week 1 of the regular season against the Steelers.
49ers Injuries
The 49ers have had a mountain of injuries this preseason, impacting several positions.
The most notable being Brock Purdy, who has returned to practice and is set to be the 49ers’ starting quarterback in Week 1. Purdy played against the Broncos in San Francisco’s second preseason game and was one of our Week 2 preseason winners. He had an effective game and showed no sign of any injury hangover.
Other notable injured players are Oren Burks, George Odum, and Ray-Ray McCloud, who are expected to miss what is left of the preseason. Meanwhile, the 49ers will be happy to potentially get as many as six players returning to on-field practice this upcoming week.
Both Greenlaw and Jackson had “tweaked hamstrings” but are expected to return to practice. The latest injury occurred to McCloud, who is currently sidelined with a broken wrist. McCloud has undergone surgery, and Shanahan gave an estimated timescale of eight weeks back on Aug. 10.
Kittle’s Injury History
Kittle has struggled with injuries throughout his NFL career. The adductor strain is just the latest for the superstar tight end to suffer.
In each of the last four seasons, he’s missed two or more games. Kittle’s multiple injuries over that time include having suffered a Grade 2 groin strain in September 2022 and both a calf strain and knee strain in 2021. Back in 2020, Kittle sustained a sprained MCL and had a small fracture in his foot.
Nevertheless, Kittle has continued to fight through these injuries and has emerged as one of the best tight ends in the NFL over recent seasons. In fact, he was voted as the 52nd overall player in PFN’s NFL Top 100 Players of 2023.
Kittle is now 30 years old, and we’ve yet to see if the injuries will take their toll. Kittle is listed as one of the top tight ends in fantasy football for 2023, but our fantasy projection for Kittle is that he comes with risk.
