Tag: George Kittle

49ers rush to defend Jimmy Garoppolo from all the haters after win over Packers

The 49ers were quick to defend their quarterback on Sunday night, though it’s unclear what they’re defending him from.

The San Francisco 49ers are 10-1, yet have faced a bit of scrutiny after some less-than-convincing wins. Some of that scrutiny, however small it is, has been fixed on the team’s quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo.

Is it deserved? Maybe? But also the 49ers are 10-1, and it’s clear they’re trying to find anything to sink their teeth into and get them motivated. Even 10-1 teams need to channel that “nobody believes in us” energy, and so the 49ers have chosen to fixate on the criticism of Garoppolo’s play this season.

After the 49ers beat the Packers convincingly on Sunday night, 38-7, the San Francisco players heaped praise upon Garoppolo.

First came tight end George Kittle, who is playing through a horrifying sounding injury, on the speech he credits Garoppolo with lifting them over the Packers.

Here’s Kittle, via B/R:

“I think my favorite thing in the game was, I think it was after our third drive, we scored right away then had two three-and-outs that weren’t very good. Jimmy got the whole offense together. He was like: ‘Hey, you gotta play with intensity. Our defense is playing their asses off, and we’ve just got to take advantage of the opportunities they’re giving us. Because Aaron Rodgers is one heck of a quarterback, a Hall of Fame quarterback. We just can’t give him the opportunity to come back and beat us.’

Then next came Richard Sherman, who by the sound of his speech made it seem like the entire punditry class was saying Garoppolo should be kicked out of the league and thrown in a dumpster. Again, not sure that’s the case!

Here was Sherman’s speech.

The transcript:

“You hear some of the noise and things said about him, and it’s frustrating, because we see him every day. We see what kind of work ethic he puts in, the hours he puts in preparing — the first one in, the last one out. The guy looks for no credit. All he does is encourage his teammates and put more work in.

“And then you have people nit-picking. We run for 300 yards, and they’re like, ‘Well, he didn’t throw a lot.’ We ran for 300 yards! You know, then he throws for 400, and they’re like, ‘Well, I think he got out-played by Kyler Murray.’ And Kyler Murray barely had 100 yards passing. And you start to laugh at these things, but you’re like, the goalposts keep moving with him.

“And the one thing you can appreciate — and I’ve said this before — you can appreciate being good enough that people got to make excuses for why you’re good. He’s a good enough quarterback that people have to make excuses, they have to move the bar.

“…What else can the guy do? He’s helping his team win.”

Are people really being that critical of Garoppolo? He had a shaky preseason, and he had an awful game against the Seahawks. But other than that, he’s been fine, which is all the 49ers need him to be.

My colleague Steven Ruiz ranked him 15th in our NFL quarterback ranking, which seems more or less fair to me. He’s got a quick release and can make good throws and sometimes makes iffy decisions. That’s not bad for a starting QB! A lot of teams would happily take that.

Still, teams need bulletin board material, I suppose. My guess is that the 49ers seized on criticism of Garoppolo before the game, and found some pundit who said that Aaron Rodgers is better than he is. (Which is true!) They then won the game, and then used the mics given to them afterward to tell all the haters how wrong they were.

Which, who am I to criticize. Whatever it takes, right?

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George Kittle is thriving while playing through a very painful-sounding ankle injury

What a performance.

George Kittle had a huge game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night after missing two games due to ankle and knee injuries, a six-catch, 129-yard contest that included a 61-yard score.

Yet the reports — per ESPN — indicated that he broke a bone in his ankle against the Arizona Cardinals back in Week 9, something he played through in that game.

Before the game, head coach Kyle Shanahan said he would have designated Kittle as “doubtful,” but the tight end came into the SNF matchup and played.

After Kittle’s incredible performance, Shanahan described exactly what was going on, and it sounds awful. Via the Sacramento Bee:

“It’s like a piece of tree bark came off,” Shanahan said. “It was just a shaved part of the bone came off and when you do that, it’s still stable. You can’t break it worse and you’re able to go with it, but it’s extremely painful.”

“It’s football. It’s fine,” Kittle also said. “It’s a mindset. You just have to go out and play football. That’s all it is.”

Look at what he was doing on that ankle:

Wow.

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Studs and duds from 49ers’ 37-8 thumping of Packers

We’re running out of superlatives to describe how dominating the 49ers can be. 

We’re running out of superlatives to describe how dominant the 49ers can be. Green Bay never really stood a chance after fumbling on the third play of the game, and never really threatened the 49ers after 57 seconds of game time. The 49ers took their first lead 1:58 into the game and never once looked back on their way to a 37-8 romp. Sunday night was the best win of the season against the best team they’ve played.

There were plenty of studs with a few duds in San Francisco’s victory over the Packers:

Studs: The entire defense

(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

There were plenty of individual studs Sunday night, but the defense as a whole deserves the recognition here. They held the Packers, a team that averages 25 points and 356 yards per game, to just eight points and 198 yards. Aaron Rodgers threw for just 104 yards, the fewest yards he’s thrown for in his career minimum 30 passes, and he set a new low with 3.2 yards per attempt. The defense set the tone with a forced fumble on the first drive and never once lost that momentum.

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George Kittle playing through bone chip in ankle

George Kittle’s ankle is stable, but he’s playing through a bone chip he suffered Oct. 31 at Arizona.

It turns out 49ers tight end George Kittle is playing through a bone chip in his ankle. Head coach Kyle Shanahan informed the media of the extent of Kittle’s injury during his press conference after the 49ers’ 37-8 win over the Packers on Sunday night.

Kittle injured his ankle in the team’s Oct. 31 win in Arizona. He finished that game with six catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. That ankle, combined with a knee injury that Shanahan classified as a “popped capsule,” kept Kittle out of two consecutive games.

Shanahan told reporters the ankle is stable, and that Kittle will have to play through the pain.

The bone chip didn’t hamper him in his return Sunday night against the Packers. He posted six catches on six targets for 129 yards and a touchdown. He was effective in all three levels of the passing game and looked like his pre-injury self running through and past would-be tacklers.

Kittle’s unlikely to be fully healthy the rest of the year, but if he keeps playing like he did Sunday night, he and the 49ers should be just fine.

6 takeaways from dominant 49ers’ win over Packers

The 49ers cruised to a 37-8 win over the Green Bay Packers, who entered the game as the No. 2 seed in the NFC. It was a thorough domination at Levi’s Stadium by the NFC’s top team as San Francisco moved to 10-1 for the season. Here’s what we took …

The 49ers cruised to a 37-8 win over the Green Bay Packers, who entered the game as the No. 2 seed in the NFC. It was a thorough domination at Levi’s Stadium by the NFC’s top team as San Francisco moved to 10-1 for the season.

Here’s what we took away from Sunday night:

49ers silence doubters

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The 49ers silenced a lot of talk about their weak strength of schedule going into Sunday night. They dominated from start to finish against the Packers and looked like the class of the NFC. In a week where the No. 3-seed Saints struggled to beat the Panthers, the 49ers’ domination of a No. 2-seed Green Bay club really stands out. San Francisco, if anyone still doubted it, is for real.

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49ers vs. Packers: 3 things that stood out in the 3rd quarter

The Packers looked like they were going to sneak back into the game but George Kittle killed all hope of that.

The Packers looked like they were going to sneak back into the game, but George Kittle killed all hope of that. His 61-yard touchdown reception following Green Bay’s first score of the game put the 49ers back up 30-8 in a matter of minutes.

The 49ers will look to hold onto their three-score lead in the final 15 minutes. Here’s what stood out in the third quarter:

Juszczyk kills first drive momentum

The 49ers came out in the second half with a chance to really apply pressure to the Packers, but a penalty essentially killed the drive on the first play. Tevin Coleman gained three yards but Juszczyk was called for lowering his helmet on a block that turned a second-and-7 into a first-and-22 and put the offense in a hole. It was a big drive to start the half but the penalty ruined any shot at a productive drive.

Raheem Mostert on special teams

While he’s now the No. 2 running back with Matt Breida hurt, Mostert  earned his spot with the 49ers for his special teams play and that’s shown on Sunday night. Mostert made his second open-field tackle in the third quarter on a Mitch Wisnowsky 51-yard punt. Mostert has looked terrific and has played a big role in Green Bay having -3 punt return yards.

Sherman aids Green Bay’s first scoring drive

The Packers had nine net-passing yards in the first half and got shutout in the first 30 mintues. They were able to score on their first drive of the second half, and Sherman played a big role. Green Bay had a third-and-8 and got called for a holding on a Rodgers incomplete pass, but Sherman was called for illegal contact, wiping out the play. On the replay of the down, Rodgers scrambled short of the first-down marker, but Sherman was called for a pretty weak unsportsmanlike conduct to give the Packers a first down. Green Bay scored two plays later. Sherman has now been called for five penalties the past two weeks.

WATCH: George Kittle is back with long TD

George Kittle announced his presence with authority on a long TD catch to answer a Packers score.

The Packers scored a touchdown midway through the third quarter to cut San Francisco’s lead to 23-8. The 49ers needed two plays to answer with a touchdown of their won. Jimmy Garoppolo found Kendrick Bourne for 14 yards, then hit George Kittle deep for a touchdown.

That’s one way to answer a touchdown. Kittle’s presence has been enormous, in case there was any question about his importance to the offense.

49ers vs. Packers: 3 things that stood out in the 2nd quarter

The 49ers continued to dominate in the second quarter holding the Packers scoreless through the first half. 

The 49ers continued to dominate in the second quarter holding the Packers scoreless through the first half. The offense picked up some of the slack late in the quarter scoring a field goal and a touchdown on their last three drives of the half.

The 49ers took a 23-0 lead into the second half. Here’s what stood out in the second quarter:

Witherspoon back on the field and tested

After Emmanuel Moseley started the game, Ahkello Witherspoon entered in the second quarter and Aaron Rodgers wanted to see what Witherspoon could offer early. On second-and-8 in 49ers territory Rodgers took a deep shot to Davante Adams who was covered by Witherspoon and the pass was incomplete. While the throw was overthrown, it’s important to note that Witherspoon was stride-for-stride with Adams and was tight in coverage. Rodgers was 0-for-3 on balls thrown at Witherspoon in the first half.

Swiss cheese offensive line

What has been a consistently good group the offensive line hasn’t been good Sunday night. Jimmy Garoppolo hasn’t been great in large part because the offensive front can’t keep the Packers out of the backfield. Mike McGlinchey allowed a sack right before the end of the first quarter, and Justin Skule allowed one that turned a second down into a third-and-31, essentially ending the 49ers’ drive. The line will need to better if the offense is expected to do anything. Skule was benched in favor of Daniel Brunskill midway through the quarater.

The George Kittle drive

Kittle returned Sunday night after missing the last two games with what was revealed to be a fractured ankle, and Garoppolo found him a few times in the second quarter. After consecutive three-and-outs for the offense, Kyle Shanahan force-fed the star tight end. The first two plays went to Kittle for gains of 18 and 22 yards and led to a scoring drive with Chase McLaughlin’s second field goal of the game. The points were the first scored by the 49ers since the 3:13 point in the first quarter.

Pro Bowl TE George Kittle expected to play Sunday vs. Packers

The 49ers will have one of the game’s best tight ends available on Sunday against the Packers.

The Green Bay Packers better be prepared to face one of the game’s best tight ends on Sunday night.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is expected to play through his ankle injury and return to the field for the first time since suffering the injury on Oct. 31 against the Arizona Cardinals.

The 49ers listed Kittle, who practiced in a limited capacity this week, as questionable. Schefter reports that Kittle suffered a broken bone in his ankle against the Cardinals and still isn’t recovered from the injury.

Kittle has 46 catches for 541 yards and two touchdowns this season. He set the NFL record for receiving yards by a tight end last season when he was named a Pro Bowler and a second-team All-Pro.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur called Kittle one of the game’s best tight ends.

The Packers don’t have an obvious coverage option against Kittle, although defensive coordinator Mike Pettine will likely use a bunch of players, including safeties Adrian Amos, Darnell Savage and Ibraheim Campbell, and possibly even second-year linebacker Oren Burks or slot cornerback Tramon Williams.

All players must be ready to take on Kittle in the run game and tackle him after the catch. Even at less than 100 percent, Kittle presents major problems for the Packers as a blocker and a receiver.

Inactives are due 90 minutes before game time. By about 6:00 p.m. CT, the Packers will know if they’ll have to face Kittle or not.

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49ers passing attack on display in 6 players to watch on offense vs. Packers

The 49ers offense features one of its biggest challenges on Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers. 

The 49ers offense features one of its biggest challenges Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers. The challenge may be less about overcoming the Green Bay defense than it is about keeping up with its offense. Jimmy Garoppolo will take on Aaron Rodgers and the Packers’ high-powered offense that always is a threat to score a ton of points.

With that said, there will be a lot of focus on the playmakers on San Francisco’s offense. Here are the six players to watch on that side of the ball for the 49ers in what could be the marquee game of the season:

QB Jimmy Garoppolo

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

We got the full Garoppolo experience last week in the 49ers’ 36-26 win over the Cardinals. There were two bad throws that led to interceptions deep in Arizona territory, but outside of those throws, Garoppolo was near perfect with 424 yards and four touchdowns. Sunday night could be a shootout with Rodgers on the other side. With the running game struggling, Garoppolo might need to be perfect Sunday.

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