It’s becoming clear the 49ers got away with robbery when they selected tight end George Kittle in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL draft. The No. 146 overall pick is outproducing his second-year counterparts by a wide margin through their first season-and-a-half.
Kittle wasn’t a big-time pass catcher in college at Iowa. He caught just 48 passes for 737 yards and 10 touchdowns in four seasons with the Hawkeyes. His athletic measurables at the combine were outstanding, but somehow Kittle still slid to the tight-end-needy 49ers in Round 5. Head coach Kyle Shanahan doesn’t have much of an explanation for Kittle’s fall down the draft board.
“(He) looks like first-round talent, but we had a feeling he was going to fall just in the fact that he didn’t do a lot in the passing game,” Shanahan said via the Sacramento Bee. “All we hear about is people talking about him as a run blocker and things like that, which is one of the reasons we really liked him. But, the main reason was the pass game. He didn’t get to show that a ton which (led to) him, we thought, not get noticed in the first couple of rounds. But, we were very surprised he fell to the fifth.”
Here are the tight ends who went ahead of Kittle in 2017:
Round 1, Pick 19: OJ Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Round 1, Pick 23: Evan Engram, New York Giants
Round 1, Pick 29: David Njoku, Cleveland Browns
Round 2, Pick 44: Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Rams
Round 2, Pick 45: Adam Shaheen, Chicago Bears
Round 3, Pick 100: Jonnu Smith, Tennessee Tiitans
Round 4, Pick 127: Michael Roberts, Detroit Lions
Round 5, Pick 145: Jake Butt, Denver Broncos
The 49ers have taken full advantage of the mid-round steal through the first year-and-a-half of his career. Kittle has 84 receptions for 1,207 yards and five touchdowns on 124 targets in 24 games.
Among the 2017 rookie tight end class, Kittle is No. 1 in receptions and yards. He’s No. 2 in targets behind Engram. His 14.37 yards-per-catch are No. 2 behind Howard. Kittle ranks No. 4 in touchdowns behind the three first-round tight ends.
Kittle’s 2018 campaign with 41 catches, 692 yards and three touchdowns through nine games would be among the most productive full seasons for any members of the 2017 rookie tight end class. Nobody outside of Howard and Engram have come close to Kittle’s overall numbers.
Two things stand out for the 49ers’ young tight end. One big one is his versatility. For all his high-volume pass-catching numbers, he’s an outstanding run blocker who allows the 49ers’ offense to work with maximum deception.
Engram is used more as a wide receiver than a tight end, and injuries have dramatically impacted his production in his second season. Jonnu Smith was supposed to be the heir-apparent to Delanie Walker in Tennessee, but his struggles with drops and developing as a blocker have slowed his involvement in the Titans’ offense. Run blocking has not been a problem for Kittle who’s made a habit of churning out at least one highlight-reel block per game.
Then there’s the big-play ability. Kittle’s athleticism has translated seamlessly from pre-draft workouts to the NFL gridiron.
Whether he’s catching a screen pass and running through tacklers, or outrunning defensive backs on a seam route, Kittle has a knack for cranking out chunk plays. He already has eight receptions of 30-plus yards. Howard was lauded for his athleticism and ability to stretch the field coming out of Alabama. His 54 receptions have gone for an impressive 904 yards to go along with 11 touchdowns. He’s had six catches go for 30-plus yards – two fewer than Kittle.
Njoku has had his struggles due in part to drops. He’s posted 67 receptions for 706 yards and six touchdowns in his first 25 games. However, he’s also dealt with a quarterback carousel full of less-than-impressive signal callers in Cleveland.
No other tight ends have moved the needle from the 2017 rookie class though. There have been flashes here and there from players like Ricky Seals-Jones and Gerald Everett, but there hasn’t been any consistency. It’s becoming increasingly clear that San Francisco got away with robbery.
Kittle was a superb value in the fifth round regardless of what happened early in the draft. The fact eight tight ends, including three in the first round, went before him is astonishing given his superior production through 24 games.
About the Author: Insidethe49
