Report: 49ers Aren't Willing to Make George Kittle NFL's Top Paid TE

This is getting messy.

Dec 30, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) before the game against the Detroit Lions at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

This is getting messy.

On Wednesday. The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported that George Kittle's absence from Phase 1 of 49ers OTAs was contract-related, he wants to be the highest-paid tight end in the NFL and other teams are curious to see if he'll request a trade.

Kittle quickly responded to Russini on social media and wrote that her sources were wrong.

So, Russini responded by doubling down and adding a new piece of information: The 49ers apparently are unwilling to make Kittle the highest-paid tight end and he might ultimately accept less to stay in Santa Clara.

"George Kittle and the San Francisco 49ers are in the middle of this negotiation," Russini said Wednesday on her podcast. "We know that Kittle wasn't there for OTAs and from what I was told it has to do with his contract. He wants to be the highest-paid tight end in the NFL I was told. In fact, many around the league know about this. He wants to make about $20 million a year. So I reported that. And Kittle, who's one of the nicest people in football, responded that my sources were wrong.

"That was one of those situations where I immediately had to go dig on it. Did someone give me bad info? And there were just so many people sharing about this that I knew it wasn't wrong. And it's not wrong. It really comes down to semantics.

"When you take a look at the Trey McBride deal, it's four years, $76 million. Just a few months ago Arizona did that deal making him the highest-paid tight end. The 49ers made an offer to Kittle that in guaranteed money essentially made him the highest-paid tight end but it still was less than the Trey McBride contract. So, it really comes down to these small details.

"In my opinion, it's really not about that. It's more about are they going to be able to come to an agreement? Because right now, there's no deal. This isn't done at this point. So, I'm sure George is mad that it's out there. The truth of the matter is he wants to be paid. And I think he knows perhaps the San Francisco 49ers aren't willing to go that high."

To summarize, if Kittle wants to finish his career with the 49ers, he'll have to take slightly less per season on average than McBride. Sounds fair to me. Kittle is almost 32 years old and he has made a ton of money in his career. He should sacrifice $1 million per season for the good of the team.

Or, if he needs to make $20 million per season, trade him while his value is at its highest.

It's a business.