In Week 4, the San Francisco 49ers will face the New England Patriots. The Niners were without star tight end George Kittle last week due to a hamstring injury he suffered in practice. Will Kittle play in Week 4?
What Is the Latest on George Kittle’s Injury?
Last week, Kittle suffered a hamstring injury in practice and it sidelined him for the 49ers’ Week 3 game against the Los Angeles Rams.
In addition to Kittle, San Francisco was without Christian McCaffrey (Achilles tendinitis), and wide receiver Deebo Samuel (calf).
George Kittle back at practice today for the 49ers pic.twitter.com/ynISEp9tSH
— KNBR (@KNBR) September 25, 2024
Fortunately for the 49ers, Kittle returned to practice this week and he’s good to go against the Patriots on Sunday.
Kittle’s Fantasy Outlook
Coming off of a strong showing in Minnesota (7-76-1), Kittle was inactive last week with a hamstring injury. Sadly, this is kind of the cost of doing business.
San Francisco’s star tight end hasn’t played a full set of games since 2018. With a 74.2% career catch rate from Purdy, not to mention a touchdown once every 10.3 targets from the artist formerly known as Mr. Irrelevant, Kittle deserves to be locked into your lineup anytime the 49ers put him out on the field.
It also doesn’t hurt that he was targeted on 27.6% of his routes in Week 2, and that was with Deebo Samuel Sr. active.
This season, Kittle has caught 84.6% of his targets, showcasing efficiency that we haven’t seen him sustain with Brock Purdy under center in seasons past. Also, Kittle played 91.4% of the snaps in San Francisco’s lone win this season
In the event that you’re still skittish, the Patriots’ defense is plenty stout. However, Tyler Conklin did catch five of six targets for a career-high 93 yards against them last Thursday night.