The San Francisco 49ers have set their initial 53-man roster. While it is almost certainly going to change ahead of their first regular-season game against the Los Angeles Rams, it did give us a hint about the status of star tight end George Kittle.
The Niners kept four tight ends on their initial 53-man roster: Kittle, Jake Tonges, Luke Farrell, and Brayden Willis. Kittle, Tonges, and Farrell do not come as any surprise, but the inclusion of Willis suggests the Niners are at least preparing for the possibility that Kittle will be unable to go in Australia.
If they felt very confident about Kittle’s availability for the game, Willis likely would have been cut or stashed away on the practice squad. Willis has been with the Niners since 2023 when he was selected in the seventh round of the NFL Draft.
He’s yet to catch a pass in an actual NFL game, although he’s been targeted a couple of times. With Willis' size, he has always seemed like a guy with a ton of potential and will usually make a very athletic play or two in training camp to remind everyone of that potential. But he’s just never been consistent enough to move up the depth chart at all.
If Kittle wasn’t able to go, then Willis would be a serviceable No. 3 option on the depth chart who could at least block if needed, even though head coach Kyle Shanahan probably wouldn’t dial up any plays for him. Tonges, Farrell, and fullback/Swiss Army man Kyle Juszczyk should be able to hold down the fort themselves if Kittle is unable to go, but Willis is a fine backup option.
The Kittle decision is an interesting one for San Francisco, though. He’s made great progress as he recovers from his Achilles tear, which happened earlier this year. But Shanahan threw some confusion into the equation with his recent comments on Kittle.
San Francisco cannot afford to put Kittle out there unless he feels completely fine, so if there is even the slightest doubt about him, then he probably shouldn’t even make the flight to Melbourne and should instead set his sights on Week 2, which will be a home game in Santa Clara.
It’s a smart move to have Willis on the team just in case, but it reinforces the uncertainty surrounding Kittle ahead of a big game against a divisional opponent which could have huge NFC West playoff ramifications later on.
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