In three seasons, George Kittle has gone from being selected in the fifth round to the best tight end in football. That’s a huge leap for a guy who wasn’t heavily promoted for leaving Iowa.
Did the 49ers believe Kittle would be a good NFL player? Yes. Did they think he would stiffen and blast his way to elite status in three seasons? Doubtful, or else they wouldn’t have waited until the fifth round to recruit him.
However, 49ers vice president of player personnel Adam Peters told 49ers.com they had a third-round qualification at Kittle before the draft, but they believed he would be there later and took the opportunity by waiting to recruit him. .
“I remember exploring George Kittle in Iowa when he was with the Broncos, at the time,” Peters said. “He was a really unique athlete, but most people didn’t think much about the prospect. When we got to the 49ers, our coaching staff did a great job of identifying exactly what George could do, and exactly what George could be on. Our offense.
“I don’t know if anyone really knew how good George was going to be, but we had targeted him and we really had a third-round draft on George. So we thought he was a third-round pick, but we played, and we knew we could catch him. in the fifth round. “
What was in George Kittle’s exploration? # 49ers VP of Player Personnel Adam Peters shares insights into the process and more in the first episode of the Meet the Scouts 2020 series hosted by @zennioptical. pic.twitter.com/cRzuwllPog
– San Francisco 49ers (@ 49ers) July 23, 2020
A risky proposition, to be sure, but it all worked for the 49ers. Kittle has logged consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and won two Pro Bowl picks and an All-Pro wink in his first three seasons. He set the record for most receiving yards for a tight end in a single season in 2018, when he accumulated 1,377 yards in 88 sacks.
Kittle has become one of the most dominant players in the NFL, and he will soon have a great payday. The 49ers were lucky that Kittle, who went unnoticed due to a college career that wasn’t as productive as his talent suggests, was still in the fifth round. However, they would not risk again.
“I don’t think we’ll do it again. I don’t think we’ll bet on that again, obviously,” Peters said, “but we were able to get George in the fifth round. It really was great.” because we called our opportunity a few weeks earlier and we made it happen on draft day. “
[[[[RELATED: Jimmy G, secondary key for the 49ers to stay on top of the NFC in the long term]The key to building a quality roster depth in the NFL is finding prospects in Rounds 3-5 that can be productive NFL starters. If you can do that year after year, your roster will be ready to compete for the Super Bowl titles.
And sometimes you’re lucky and dig up a late gem that turns into a star, even if it’s not 99 in Madden. The game pays off from time to time.
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