Kittle Nears 1,000 Yards, 49ers Eye Rare Offensive Feat
SANTA CLARO – George Kittle is very close to reaching a personal milestone for the third time in his career, and in doing so, the All-Pro tight end can help the 49ersand#039; a crime to join a very exclusive statistics club. Kittle caught 62 of his 86 targets for 991 yards this year, putting him nine yards away from his third career 1,000-yard season.
Kittle accomplished the feat with 1,377 and 1,053 yards in both 2018 and 2019. What might make Kittle’s major production even sweeter is the 49ers’ star power and#039; violation Brandon Aiyuki already has his second career 1,000-yard season (1,203), and Deebo Samuel isn’t too far behind with 834 yards and two more. Kittle, Aiyuki and Samuel could become the sixth trio in NFL history to both reach 1,000 yards in the same season.
The 2008 Arizona Cardinals are the last team to have three separate players record 1,000 yards in a season, with Larry Fitzgerald (1,431), Anquan Boldin (1,038) and Steve Breaston (1,006) accomplishing the rare feat. Of those five times, there were three teammates with 1,000 yards each, but only once did the group include a tight end — the 1980 San Diego Chargers tight end Kellen Winslow (1,290) and punters Charlie Joiner (1,132) and John. . Jefferson (1340).
In addition to the 1980 Chargers and 2008 Cardinals, there are also the 1989 Washington Club (Art Monk, Ricky Sanders and Gary Clark), the 1995 Atlanta Falcons (Eric Metcalf, Terance Mathis and Bert Emanuel) and the 2004 Indianapolis Warren Colts (Reggae). ). members of an exclusive club. “We have so many mouths to feed this offense, which is a big problem,” Kittle said. “So when you get the ball, you want to do everything you can to run as much as you can. “It’s great when you’re on a team with a lot of high-level players. It’s hard to BS at 1,000 yards. We have a lot of guys who contribute at a high level.
” A solid passing game doesn’t mean the ground game is lacking. Christian McCaffrey recorded 1,395 yards rushing against 258 rushing yards and 537 receiving yards, which means the 49ers may belong to an even smaller club. Of the five teams with three 1,000-yard receivers, each had one, with the 1995 Falcons (Craig Heyward – 1,083) and the 2004 Colts (Edgerrin James – 1,548) also having a 1,000-yard rusher. As for Kittle, while his ultimate goal is to win games, his personal accomplishments are not lost.
“My goal every year is 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns,” Kittle said. “That’s a goal I’ve had since my sophomore year when my tough head coach [Jon Embry] pushed me to do it. I love that mindset. “Is that the most important thing? No, winning is.
But it’s a fun little box that you can check, it sure looks good, and if you have 1,000 yards, that definitely means you’re contributing to the team in a good way. andquot; Kittle is averaging a career-high 16 yards per reception, nearly half a yard more than his midseason record-setting season in 2018.
That figure is due in part to connecting with second-year quarterback Brock Purdy on a deep pass. The 49ers have two games left – this Sunday against the Washington Commander and Jan. January 6th or 7th against the Los Angeles Rams for a historic feat.
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