In certain ways, George Kittle is slowing down. And in certain ways, he’s having the best season of his career.
This is the paradox of Kittle.
He just turned 31 a few days ago. When Rob Gronkowski was 31, he was a Tampa Bay Buccaneer. He retired at 32. And like Kittle, Gronkowski was an extremely physical player. A great blocker and an incredible runner after the catch. He broke tackles all the time, and his playing style shortened his career.
Kittle is trying to extend his career. Why shouldn’t he play until he’s 35? Travis Kelce just turned 35 and he’s still making a ton of money. Kittle could make even more if he stays healthy. But he needs to adjust his game.
He no longer breaks lots of tackles. In fact, he has broken only one so far this season. When he catches the ball, he goes down fairly quickly. So he’s not the YAC threat he was when he was younger, which is to be expected. Kelce isn’t much of a YAC guy anymore either.
To compensate, Kittle has become the 49ers’ go-to guy in the red zone. He currently has a league-leading 5 touchdown catches, which is a big uptick for him. He had six touchdown catches in all of last season.
Suddenly, Kittle has become an expert at getting open in tight spaces and making catches with defenders hanging all over him. And it looks like he could continue to play this way for years to come if he stays healthy.
Don’t be surprised if Kittle makes it into the Hall of Fame one day.
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