The San Francisco 49ers put up a season-high 41 points against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
The offense looked strong, but tight end George Kittle seems to realize that there are no more big reinforcements coming.
Speaking after the game, Kittle said that the team was "basically healthy" on offense.
His full quote was:
"Well, the nice thing is... We haven't had a bye week yet, which is crazy to me. We have a Monday night game, so we have an extra day, then a short weekend to Cleveland. We're positioned right where we want to be. Our offense is basically healthy. If we can just keep rolling and keep making plays. The crazy thing, too, is Ricky [Pearsall] had one catch today."
Why they are not "completely healthy" is probably because wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is still recovering from the major knee injury he suffered last season.
However, this seems to be a subtle admission from Kittle that Aiyuk is probably not coming back this season.
The high-paid wide receiver has not had his practice window opened yet. While there is a chance he could play this season, at this point it may be better to just shut him down.
It is questionable whether the Niners really even need Aiyuk to be successful on offense. They just put up 41 points without him, and the return of Pearsall gives the 49ers three solid wide receivers between him, Jauan Jennings, and Kendrick Bourne. Not to mention Kittle himself, and of course, Christian McCaffrey at running back.
With all of those pieces healthy, the Niners have a truly explosive offense that could give the rest of the NFC nightmares. A healthy Aiyuk would obviously add just more firepower to the mix, but if there is any doubt about his health, the 49ers should be cautious.
They may not be cautious with him because they want him back next season. But maybe they don't want him to re-injure himself because they want to trade him this offseason, and it would obviously be tougher to get rid of him if he's hurt.
Aiyuk has a pricey, onerous contract the Niners would certainly like to get rid of, although other than Pearsall, it's not clear who could be an effective wide receiver next season.
Still, Kittle seems to get that Aiyuk is unlikely to come back, so the Niners will have to make with what they have currently on offense, which is still am embarrassment of riches.