Will the 49ers Spend a High Draft Pick on a Tight End?

The 49ers have to start planning for life after George Kittle.

Jan 30, 2025; Mobile, AL, USA; American team tight end Mason Taylor of LSU (86) and American team defensive back Dan Jackson of Georgia (37) spar during Senior Bowl practice for the American team at Hancock Whitney Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images | Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

The 49ers have to start planning for life after George Kittle.

Kittle will be 32 in October and he has just one year remaining on his contract. When the season ended, he said he wanted to sign an extension with the 49ers, but that was before they took on more than $80 million in dead cal penalties and let nine starters leave in free agency. Now, their Super Bowl window is closed for at least one year.

Maybe Kittle would like an opportunity to win a Super Bowl elsewhere.

Or, maybe the 49ers don't want to extend Kittle. Doing so would cost them at least $20 million per season, and that's a lot to pay for an older tight end when you're not a true contender. Maybe the 49ers would be open to trading him and drafting his replacement. That's what Bill Walsh probably would do. He would trade Kittle a year too early rather than a year too late.

And if the 49ers were to trade Kittle this offseason, they just might be able to get a first-round pick in return for him.

And they wouldn't necessarily have to take a tight end in Round 1 to replace him. They could take Tyler Warren or Colston Loveland with the 11th pick because those two are good prospects. Or, they could take Mason Taylor, who's the son of Jason Taylor. Mason Taylor should be available in Round 2 and he's more like Kittle than Warren or Loveland are.