San Francisco 49ers: Strengths, weaknesses and X-factors for each position
By Peter Panacy
Tight End
Pro Bowler George Kittle went from a promising fifth-round NFL Draft pick in 2017 to a superstar in 2018, following his record-setting 1,377-yard campaign — a year in which he was one of only a handful of feel-good stories for San Francisco.
Kittle might not break the record again in 2019, but that doesn’t lessen his importance to head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Few players in the league are capable of creating as many yards after the catch than Kittle, so look for that to be a factor once more.
Behind Kittle, though, things get interesting.
Strengths
Kittle. Enough said.
Weaknesses
There’s some questionable depth after Kittle, who was playing with a cracked rib for the second half of 2018. No. 2 tight end Garrett Celek ended up with more accepted penalties against (six) than receptions (five) last year, and he’s still in the concussion protocol after suffering a head injury in Week 16.
Celek might not make the 53-man roster, leaving blocking tight end Levine Toilolo and the 49ers’ sixth-round draft choice, Stanford’s Kaden Smith, as the two other realistic options.
X-Factors
Defenses hate two legitimate pass-catching tight ends on the field at the same time, and rare are the defenses equipped to handle them.
San Francisco hopes to have found the complementary piece to Kittle in Smith, yet his development will likely take some time. Meanwhile, the Niners have to hope Toilolo’s blocking continues where it left off, giving Shanahan an upgrade over Celek in this particular category.