George Kittle Should Make Adjustments to his Playing Style
Through three seasons, George Kittle has played in 48 out of 51 possible games. From a durability standpoint, that’s pretty darn good, as that breaks down to over a 94% participation rate. However, given his physical playing style, remaining that durable may be a challenge as his NFL career advances.
Throughout the offseason, Kittle’s contract situation was one of the hotter discussions not only locally, but around the entire NFL. Out of all those I discussed the potential extension with, I was particularly interested in the take of former 49ers’ wideout and Super Bowl champion, Mike Shumann.
Shumann had a thought on the extension that was not brought up all that often, and in my opinion should have. He knew that extending Kittle, who he views as the heart and soul of the team, was very important for many reasons. But he felt like the 49ers may be reluctant to give him a large contract. The reason being, his playing style puts him far too at risk for the team to feel comfortable giving him record-setting money.
Of course, the dust has now settled, and Kittle has a new five-year, $75 million contract, with $40 million guaranteed. The team clearly wasn’t too concerned with his style of play, as that is what guaranteeing over 50% of his contract insinuates.
Even though Kittle has his new contract, I do agree with Shumann. His playing style has its concerns.
In fact, a recent quote from Kittle and a recent story from the Athletic, by 49ers’ beat writer David Lombardi, made me immediately think of Shumann’s concerns.
The following is a quote from Kittle, after receiving his contract extension:
“Now I can go onto a football field and not have any worries about anything. I don’t have to worry about getting injured. I don’t have to worry about anything. I can just go out there and focus on football, which is the best job in the world. I get paid to play football”.
This quote raised an eyebrow because it gives off the impression, to me at least, that we may see an even more violent Kittle. That is saying something, because Kittle is already as physical as they come on each and every down, whether the ball is in his hands or not.
It’s not hard to figure out why Kittle plays the way he does. He’s an alpha, and as he commonly reiterates, his favorite part about football is moving someone from point “A” to point “B” against his will.
His mindset was shaped by 49ers tight end’s coach Jon Embree. That is where the story from Lombardi comes into play. Lombardi reported that during Kittle’s rookie year, Embree would fine Kittle $10 each time he ran out of bounds, instead of taking on would-be tacklers.
Without a doubt, the mentality of refusing to go down without a fight is why Kittle’s the superstar that he is today. But the side effects are that he exposes his body a great deal, which invites the possibility of injury.
That is why the concern Shumann has with Kittle’s playing style is absolutely valid. After hearing Kittle’s quote and reading Lombardi’s story from the Athletic, I reached out to Shumann to hear his thoughts.
Let me make one thing clear - Shumann is not suggesting that Kittle should completely change his playing style, as he acknowledges his physical play is what makes him great. “You don’t want a guy to change the way he plays, but you want him to start protecting himself more," Shumann said. That’s the theme behind his concern.
Shumann talks about how Kittle needs to be more conscientious of how vulnerable he is when the ball is in his hands, and how he should make the necessary adjustments to ensure a longer NFL career.
“He plays with such reckless abandon that everybody loves," Shumann said. "Fans, teammates, media. You want to have this guy on your team. But... he’s got to learn how to protect himself."
Shumann goes on to compare Kittle to 49ers’ legend Dwight Clark (Shumann's former teammate), and talks about how Kittle makes himself vulnerable to injury:
“Dwight Clark used to be a little bit like this. On 3rd and 10, he’d go 9, catch the ball, and take three more hits to get to 10. I used to tell him ‘Dwight, go 12, come back to the ball, you got a 1st down and don’t need to take so many hits. And George… he’s going to fight and scrap. His arms are everywhere, his legs are everywhere. He’ll jump up from the ground. He’ll spin, and when you spin you lose sight of where the contact is coming from, and sometimes those could be the most violent hits."
Kittle, 26, is now under contract until 2025. An additional goal for him should be to play out this entire contract healthy, so he could get another big payday at the age of 32. If Kittle wants longevity in the NFL, he should consider taking the advice of Shumann, an eight year NFL vet.
“There’s ways to protect yourself as you’re about to get hit," Shumann explained. "If you want longevity in this league, you have to go down after the first or second hit. He goes down after three or four different hits... I’m hoping that George will learn maybe to be a little more protective."
Yes, Kittle’s long runs when defenders bounce off him left and right are beyond exciting. But if seeing less of those runs means Kittle has a better chance at a longer football career, than that is a trade off everyone should accept.
Kittle will always be Kittle, even if he starts to play just a little bit more cautiously. If he makes those adjustments, it betters his chances of having a career that goes into his mid to late 30’s. In return, it would give him a great chance to solidify himself as a Hall of Fame tight end. The greatest individual honor of all.
Take care of that body, George.
Follow me on Twitter: @NinerNick_22
