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The 49ers have Met with Michigan TE Colston Loveland at the Combine

This week, John Lynch said he wants George Kittle to retire with the 49ers, but he also had a formal interview with his potential replacement.
Grant Cohn|
Michigan tight end Colston Loveland (18) walks off the field after 38-17 loss to Oregon at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024.
Michigan tight end Colston Loveland (18) walks off the field after 38-17 loss to Oregon at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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San Francisco 49ers

INDIANAPOLIS -- This week, John Lynch said he wants George Kittle to retire with the 49ers, but he also had a formal interview with his potential replacement.

Michigan tight end Colston Loveland confirmed to 49ers On SI on Thursday that he has met with the 49ers at the NFL Scouting Combine. Loveland is projected to get drafted in the first half of Round 1 and the 49ers currently own the 11th pick, which means he should be in play for them.

Even if the 49ers do extend George Kittle's contract, he will turn 32 next season -- the 49ers have to be prepared for life without him. They have no idea when his body finally will break down. And while he's still in his prime, he and Loveland could form the best tight-end duo in the NFL.

Loveland is a lean pass-catching tight end who could become an elite player if he gets a bit stronger. But he has movement skills that are rare for the position.

"I always loved Jimmy Graham growing up," Loveland explained. "I played receiver growing up until about sophomore year. That's when I was too big and not a 4.3 guy, so I said, 'Alright, I'll play tight end.' Rob Gronkowski obviously was a big influence as well. Even the younger guys like Brock Bowers, Sam LaPorts, Trey McBride, Travis Kelce obviously and George Kittle. The position is evolving and right now it's a good time to be one."

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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