It's been a tough year for George Kittle.
The San Francisco 49ers star tight end opened the season on a tear against the Seattle Seahawks, catching four passes for 26 yards and a touchdown, before going down with a hamstring injury early in the second quarter. It wouldn't be until Week 7 that he'd return to the lineup.
Despite being limited to just 11 games, Kittle reeled in 57 passes for 628 yards and seven touchdowns. Extrapolated over a full season, that's an 88-catch, 970-yard, 11-touchdown pace.
Vintage Kittle.
However, in a bitter twist of fate, Kittle once again won't be available against the Seahawks as the Niners prepare to take on their hated rival in the NFC Divisional Round matchup. That's just par for the course in this injury-plagued season, amplified by his brutal Achilles tear in the Wild Card win over the Philadelphia Eagles.
It's obvious that the loss of the future Hall of Famer is a big one, but not having Kittle available against Seattle is going to hurt in more ways than one.
George Kittle's absence against Seahawks will hurt 49ers in several different ways
The first is obvious: Kittle is one of the few tight ends in the league through whom a passing offense can truly be run. Contested catches, yards after the catch, red-zone targets, and much more; the 32-year-old can still do it all.
With Ricky Pearsall questionable due to nagging ankle and knee injuries that have hampered him all season, San Francisco's wide receiver corps is thin and could desperately use a boost from the tight end position. Jake Tonges has performed admirably in Kittle's stead this season, but he's not the same kind of pressure-release valve for the offense that the seven-time Pro Bowler is.
It's not just in the passing attack where Kittle's absence looms large either. Although the 49ers pulled out the victory against Philly, the offense struggled to get into a rhythm for most of the contest as the run game stalled.
Kittle is one of the best run-blocking tight ends in the game, ranking ninth among NFL tight ends, posting a 71.2 Pro Football Focus run-blocking grade (min. 200 run blocking snaps). His impact has been obvious this season.
Christian McCaffrey has struggled at times to move the ball on the ground this year. Through Week 6, the superstar running back managed just 3.1 yards per carry. From Week 7 through the end of the regular season, with Kittle back in the fold, McCaffrey posted a much-improved 4.3 yards per attempt.
The Seahawks run defense presents a tough challenge with an 80.1 run-defense grade during the regular season, the second-best mark in the league. Seattle's linebacking duo of Drake Thomas and Ernest Jones are both impactful run defenders, posting run-defense grades of 77.0 and 75.6, respectively, placing 20th and 26th among all linebackers.
Lastly, there's the emotional leadership Kittle provides. The club has lost so many of its veteran leaders to injury during the 2025 campaign, and one of the biggest sources of energy on the offensive side of the ball is the superstar tight end.
Without Kittle on the field, San Francisco is going to need multiple players to step up in order to vanquish its nemesis and advance.
That's certainly possible, but it will put a lot of pressure on the coaching staff to gameplan past the shortcomings his absence brings.