Kittle’s sidekick: Why 49ers might be in the market for a tight end in NFL draft

Receiver, cornerback, offensive line and defensive tackle. Those are the four positions most commonly associated with the 49ers heading into next week’s NFL draft.

But what about tight end?

Finding another tight end to complement All-Pro George Kittle should be an emphasis for San Francisco’s brass for multiple reasons. The team lost two contributors at the position earlier this offseason when veteran Garrett Celek retired and Levine Toilolo went to the New York Giants in free agency.

Second, it would be wise to have the luxury to spell Kittle as he enters the next phase of his career. Kittle, 26, is playing through a painful labrum injury in his shoulder that he says would need surgery whenever his playing career is over. He’s worn a special sling on his right shoulder since entering the league.

He played through a rib cartilage injury during his record-breaking campaign in 2018 when he set the NFL mark for yards at the position with 1,377. He missed two games last season with ankle and knee injuries. As a rookie in 2017, he appeared in 15 games despite being listed with back, ankle, elbow, calf, chest, hamstring and hip issues.

Kittle is one of the 49ers’ iron men. He played over 92 percent of the snaps during the final five games of the regular season, 96 percent in the playoff wins over the Vikings and Packers, and all 58 snaps of the Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs.

It’s time the 49ers consider finding a viable option to spell Kittle to keep him fresh and avoid injuries. The upcoming NFL draft might be the best avenue after reportedly kicking the tires on free agent tight end Austin Hooper, who signed a four-year, $44 million contract with the Cleveland Browns in March.

But finding an understudy to join Kittle and fellow tight end Ross Dwelley, an El Dorado Hills native, might not be easy.

The 49ers have two first-round picks, Nos. 13 and 31, but aren’t slated to pick again until Round 5, which explains the need to trade back and acquire more bites at the apple. Getting additional selections in the middle rounds might be the best way to find a tight end that could develop into a valuable piece for Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

Overall, the tight end class is considered one of the weaker positions in the draft. There may not be a tight end selected in Round 1 for the first time since 2016.

But that doesn’t mean the class is devoid of talent. Notre Dame’s Cole Kmet and Dayton’s Adam Trautman headline the group and could go on Day 2, when San Francisco currently has no picks. Others like Harrison Bryant (Florida Atlantic), Hunter Bryant (Washington), Albert Okwuegbunam (Missouri) and Colby Parkinson (Stanford) will also get consideration. The 49ers took Stanford tight end Kaden Smith in Round 6 last year but he didn’t survive final cuts and signed with the New York Giants.

A few notes about the prospects:

▪ Trautman played quarterback in high school and his first year in college before switching to tight end during his redshirt freshman season in 2016. He became the program’s all-time leading receiver as the featured option in a spread offense, which means he’ll have to improve his blocking to be a mainstay in Shanahan’s run-heavy attack.

▪ Kmet also played baseball at Notre Dame, which might have slowed his development. But his 4.70 in the 40 at 262 pounds was impressive. He lined up all over the field in college which could ease his transition to San Francisco’s versatile scheme.

▪ Harrison Bryant was one of the most productive tight ends in college football last season. He finished with 65 catches for 1,004 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s on the smaller side at 6-4 and 243 pounds, but could become a valuable pass-catching option while he gets stronger as a blocker.

▪ Hunter Bryant is dynamic after the catch, like Kittle. His 10 forced missed tackles tied for fifth in the country, according to Pro Football Focus. Bryant was used predominately as a pass catcher and might fit best as an H-back, which could leave San Francisco wanting another tight end to serve as a primary blocker.

▪ Okwuegbunam might be in a similar boat as a pass catcher, though his 6-5, 258-pound frame might offer more to work with as a blocker. He had three touchdowns of 20 yards or longer last season and ran a 4.49 at the combine, faster than Kittle’s 4.52 in 2017.

▪ Parkinson, 6-7, is massive target who entered school as the top tight end recruit in the country in 2017, ahead of Kmet and Hunter Bryant. But he never quite lived up to that billing. He had 87 catches, 1,171 yards and 12 touchdowns during his three-year career in Palo Alto. Only one of his touchdowns came in 2019.

Breida signs tender

Restricted free agent running back Matt Breida on Thursday signed his one-year tender to stay with the 49ers, the team announced.

Breida, 25, had 623 yards on 123 carries last season as the No. 3 option among San Francisco’s talented group of running backs. However, Breida had just 23 runs over the final seven games, including the playoffs, as he fell out of the rotation behind Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman following a two-fumble sequence during the December upset loss to the Falcons.

Breida didn’t play a snap on offense in the Super Bowl and has reportedly been mentioned in trade discussions. There might not be room for the former undrafted rookie in the rotation in 2020 if Jerick McKinnon returns after missing the last two seasons with knee issues. Third-year pro Jeff Wilson will also be competing for playing time.