PFF Perfectly Spots 49ers Star George Kittle in Their TE Rankings

There was no other option but to rank him here.

November 9, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) scores a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Another day, another positional ranking that features a player from the San Francisco 49ers.

Pro Football Focus has joined the positional ranking trend of late. Recently, they did one for the running backs, with Christian McCaffrey landing an excellent spot, as expected.

This time around, it is George Kittle who is the man of the hour, as Pro Football Focus has unveiled its tight end rankings for all 32 teams. Sure enough, Kittle gets the rightful honor of being ranked as the No. 1 tight end.

Kittle gets perfectly ranked by PFF

“Kittle is currently the gold standard when it comes to the tight end position. In 2025, he paced all tight ends in PFF grade (90.7) for the third-straight season and fifth time in his nine-year career," wrote PFF.

“Kittle has been one of the five highest-graded tight ends in the league in every season but his rookie year, excelling as both a receiver and run blocker. He has also been the most valuable tight end in the league across the past three seasons, according to PFF’s Wins Above Replacement metric.”

Kittle has been the best tight end in the NFL for the last few years, and arguably longer. Even when Travis Kelce was still balling out four years ago, he skews more as a wide receiver.

Kittle is an actual, true tight end. Meaning, he blocks consistently, and he does it at a phenomenal level. He’s even better than some offensive linemen at it, which is crazy to think of.

It’s also fair to think it’s crazy to rank Kittle as the top tight end in the league after he tore his Achilles tendon half a year ago. It’s always tough with these rankings right before the regular season starts.

Is it taking into account what the player did last season? And/or is it to project what will become of them in the upcoming season? If it’s the upcoming season, Kittle shouldn’t be the top tight end.

There’s no telling if he can pick up where he left off before his injury. However, it is a positive sign that he has a good chance to play in the first four games of the season.

Nevertheless, this ranking isn’t wrong. Kittle deserves his flowers for performing as a true tight end as opposed to others who are just big-body wide receivers.

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