49ers’ George Kittle breaks record for most receiving yards by a tight end

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle now holds the record for most receiving yards in a season by a tight end following the Niners’ 48-32 loss to the L.A. Rams.

Tight end George Kittle has been on fire all season for the San Francisco 49ers. He destroyed many a defense on his way to breaking the all-time record for most receiving yards by a tight end in a season.

Sunday saw Kittle with nine receptions for 149 yards to claim the record.

Previously held by New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski with 1,327 yards, the record was beaten prior to Kittle’s attempt, with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce managing to rack up 1,336 yards to close out his season against the Oakland Raiders.

Both Kittle and Kelce have battled all year for the top-ranked tight end position, with Kittle taking the lead after Week 17.

Kittle now sits atop the leader board with 1,377 yards.

“It hasn’t really hit me yet,” Kittle said in his post-game press conference. “But it’s definitely exciting, and it definitely wasn’t just me. You had three quarterbacks throwing me the ball. You had our O-line, ups and downs throughout the year, guys in and out. It’s just a credit to our team to just keep pushing and grinding no matter what happened. I would have enjoyed a win today, but this definitely makes it a little bit better.”

Postgame Press Conference

Kyle Shanahan, George Kittle, Richard Sherman, Alfred Morris and Nick Mullens are at the podium.

Posted by San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, December 30, 2018

Kittle attained the record in style, combining for a 43-yard touchdown courtesy of a pass from quarterback Nick Mullens.

In what could have been an interception, Mullens threaded the ball to Kittle who beat the Rams’ linebackers to run it into the end zone:

https://twitter.com/49ers/status/1079536538306768897

“They were double covering me on that last drive,” Kittle continued. “I’m just glad that Nick [Mullens] said, ‘hey, I’m going to throw you the ball no matter what.’ I really appreciate that.”

Kittle has been the 49ers’ most impressive weapon on offense this season, with no other receiver coming close in yardage. He recorded four games with over 100 receiving yards as well as five touchdowns.

2018 has been a record setting year for Kittle, with the tight end breaking 49ers’ franchise records back in Week 14 with their win against the Denver Broncos. He holds the record for the most receiving yards by a 49ers tight end in a single game with 210 yards from seven receptions.

He broke the franchise record for the most receiving yards in a single season by a tight end, surpassing Vernon Davis’ 2009 record. Kittle is also the first 49ers tight end in franchise history to have a 1,000-yard season and the first 1,000-yard receiver since wide receiver Anquan Boldin in 2014.

Kittle was also recently included in the NFC’s Pro Bowl team, just to add another accolade to his stellar year.

With the 49ers set to continue the rebuild into the 2019 season, Kittle is a sure fire lock at tight end for years to come.