49ers TE George Kittle (groin) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We're tentatively expecting him to make his 2022 debut against the Broncos on Sunday night, but check back tomorrow for another update.

Niners TE George Kittle set season highs in Sunday's loss to the Bengals in targets (11), receptions (9), and receiving yards (149). He drew a target on 35.5% of QB Brock Purdy's pass attempts and accounted for 40.9% of the team's receptions and 40.8% of receiving yardage. Kittle clearly benefited from WR Deebo Samuel missing a second straight game. We'll see about Samuel's status coming out of the Week 9 bye.

49ers TE George Kittle hauled 5 of 7 targets for a team-leading 78 receiving yards in Week 7’s loss vs. the Vikings. Consistent fantasy production from the veteran has been hard to come by this season, but Kittle stepped up to the plate well in the absence of his teammate WR Deebo Samuel (shoulder). WR Brandon Aiyuk also broke double-digit PPR points on Monday night, logging 5 catches for 57 yards. Both Kittle and Aiyuk will be quality starting options in Week 8 vs. the Bengals.

49ers TE George Kittle caught just one pass for one yard in the Week 6 loss to the Browns. San Francisco's offense struggled throughout the game against a tough defense, totaling just 215 yards. But it was still surprising to see Kittle draw just two targets on 25 Brock Purdy passes -- especially with WR Deebo Samuel and RB Christian McCaffrey exiting with injuries. It's been a classic Kittle start to the season for Kittle, who has games of 16.0 and 27.7 PPR points but four others of six or fewer. He'd theoretically get a boost if Samuel and McCaffrey miss more time, even if that didn't come to fruition in this one. You simply need to keep starting Kittle because his ceiling is higher than any TE not named Kelce.

If you stuck it out with 49ers TE George Kittle through his rough go to begin the season, congratulations. The veteran found the end zone three times on Sunday to go along with 3 receptions and a team-leading 67 receiving yards. His teammate Brandon Aiyuk saw a team-high 7 targets in the contest but was only able to convert those opportunities into 4 catches for 58 yards. This 49ers offense is an incredibly efficient unit thus far in 2023. We’ll be excited to throw these guys back into lineups in Week 6 vs. the Browns.

49ers TE George Kittle totaled just six catches for 49 yards over the first two games of the season. He topped both of those marks in Thursday night's win over the Giants, hauling in seven balls for 90 yards. The big difference? San Francisco was without WR Brandon Aiyuk. Kittle drew nine targets for a 24.3% share vs. New York -- well up from his 16.7% target share over the first two weeks of the season. Kittle is an elite fantasy option whenever Aiyuk, WR Deebo Samuel, or RB Christian McCaffrey are out. He'll be inconsistent when all three of those guys are healthy. We'll see if Aiyuk is able to make it back for Week 4.