Christian McCaffrey Had Powerful Message About Losing George Kittle to Torn Achilles

George Kittle is the heart of the 49ers.

Christian McCaffrey shared a heartwarming message about George Kittle after he went down with a torn achilles. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

It wouldn’t be a big 49ers win this season without a major loss due to injury.

Already without Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Ricky Pearsall and the majority of their linebacker corpse, the 49ers saw All-Pro tight end George Kittle go down with a torn achilles during the second quarter of their wild-card playoff win over the Eagles.

The 49ers were trailing 13-7 when Kittle was carted off with the injury. Despite this, the 49ers rallied back like they have all season to pull out a 23-19 win and advance to the divisional round of the playoffs.

“It’s hard to do,” running back Christian McCaffrey told reporters after the game. “This team has carried the character of George Kittle throughout the entire year. Since I got traded here, he’s the heart and soul of this team so it’s a tough loss. When he’s not playing it means a lot.”

"When you lose a leader like that you never really lose him because his presence is still in this locker room and his energy is still here."

Christian McCaffrey on the George Kittle injury and how 85 is the heart and soul of the Niners🥹❤️💛 pic.twitter.com/SidMCFqmBl

— KNBR (@KNBR) January 12, 2026

“He’s somebody that, even going through something that he had to go through, us finding a way to finish, he’s the first guy in the locker room smiling, bumping music, happy for his teammates,” McCaffrey continued. “When you lose a leader like that, you never really lose him because his presence is still in this locker room, his energy is still here. We’re praying for him, love him, going to play for him the rest of the way.”

McCaffrey acknowledged it’s a “weird deal” that they have to continue to play after a “brother goes down,” but knows they still had a game to win. “The way that I see it, George wouldn’t want you to harp over anything going on with him. He would want you to get back in there and continue to play.”

Kittle previously missed five games with a hamstring injury, and now will likely be out until the middle of next season. The 49ers went 3-2 without Kittle earlier this season, but will have to try and get through the playoffs without their star tight end at their disposal. San Francisco has overcome injury after injury this season, but the question will be if they can keep doing it against the toughest teams in the playoffs to try and advance to the Super Bowl.

They’ll certainly continue to rely on McCaffrey this postseason, who has been the engine of the 49ers offense all season—no matter the quarterback or players on the field with him. Against the Eagles, McCaffrey racked up over 100 yards from scrimmage again and scored two touchdowns.

The 49ers will next face the Seahawks in the divisional round of the playoffs.

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