George Kittle’s San Francisco 49ers hold-out has finally come to an end, the tight end announced Tuesday.
The 31-year-old had been caught in a standoff with the team over a contract extension as the Niners began to gear up for the new season earlier this month.
But a truce has now been called as Kittle put pen to paper on a deal that will keep him with the only NFL franchise he’s ever known.
Kittle, who has called the Bay Area home since beginning his career in the NFL in 2017, has agreed a four-year, $76.4 million contract extension, the ‘Bussin’ With The Boys’ podcast reported.
The contract extension includes $40 million in guaranteed money, according to the report.
At the end of the 2024 season, Kittle made no secret of his desire to play out the rest of his career with the 49ers – the team that drafted him in the fifth-round of the 2017 Draft.
George Kittle’s San Francisco 49ers hold-out has finally come to an end
The tight end has reportedly inked a four-year, $76.4 million contract extension
Kittle has made no secret of his desire to play out the rest of his career with the 49ers
‘My goal is to wear the red and gold my entire career,’ Kittle told ESPN in January.
However, Kittle’s goal appeared to hit a road block this offseason as he and the organization struggled to reach an agreement.
As the Niners headed into their preparation for the upcoming campaign, Kittle and the team were said to remain ‘far apart’ in negotiations.
As a result, the Iowa product initially did not report for San Francisco’s voluntary workouts, which begun last week, with multiple reports, including one by The Athletic, suggesting his absence was linked to his contract negotiations, or lack thereof.
Kittle refuted those claims and he did, however, return to the Niners building last Friday, according to reports, suggesting that a deal was on the horizon.
Kittle had been heading into the final year of his previous five-year, $75-million deal which he signed in August 2020.
He has made the Pro Bowl in the past four seasons and earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2023.
Kittle, who has vowed to keep playing ‘until the wheels fall off,’ is now in a good position to earn his place in the 49ers’ 10-year club, which honors players who have played at least 10 consecutive seasons in San Francisco.
With Kittle’s deal locked up, the 49ers could turn their attention to quarterback Brock Purdy
Kittle is now entering his ninth season with the team, meaning he’d only need to play one more on his contract extension to join the 51 players currently in the club. He previously called the gaining entry to the exclusive group ‘a huge goal of mine.’
He posted his fourth career 1,000-yard receiving season in 2024, catching 78 passes for 1,106 yards and eight scores in 15 games.
The two-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowl selection has 538 receptions for 7,380 yards and 45 touchdowns in 113 games (105 starts) since San Francisco drafted him in the fifth round out of Iowa in 2017.
With Kittle now under contract, the 49ers likely will pivot to finishing a new deal with quarterback Brock Purdy.
Purdy, 25, is heading into the final season of his rookie contract and is looking for a long-term extension as the franchise quarterback. His salary cap hit for 2025 is $5.37 million.
The last player picked in the 2022 NFL Draft, Purdy has a 23-13 record as a starter while completing 67.5 percent of his passes for 9,518 yards and 64 touchdowns, with 27 interceptions.
