When Kyle ‘Juice’ Juszczyk first came to the NFL, his Harvard degree was often ridiculed. He said in an interview with his alma mater 12 years later that he felt like an outsider. He had to transition into playing fullback before getting drafted, knowing the NFL would not recruit him as a tight end. 13 years on, the 35-year-old Juszczyk has grown into an anchor of the San Francisco 49ers. The Faithful wouldn’t want him to go anywhere, and neither does he plan to.

“Man, I just feel so good, and I’m still having so much fun,” Juszczyk said on The Insiders on June 13. “I’m in zero pain whatsoever, and, like you said, I feel like I’m still playing at such a high level. So I just want to continue to do this thing as long as I possibly can. It’s been such a great offseason, like OTAs were so enjoyable, and I still feel like I’m growing.”

When you look at his 2025 highlight reel alone, it is hard to argue with him.

Juszczyk remained a versatile weapon throughout the season, including a crucial touchdown catch against the Chicago Bears on December 28. The 49ers went on to win that game 42-38. Over 17 games, all starts, during the 2025 season, he recorded 24 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns. A performance like that was only going to fuel him to do better in the future.

“I spent this whole offseason during OTAs and all that meeting with the tight ends, practicing with the tight ends, to just kinda continue to build and continue to grow,” Juszczyk added. “And I still feel like I’m doing that even at 35 years old. So I haven’t put a number on when I want my career to end, but as it stands right now, I’m going to keep going til the wheels fall off.”

Throughout his 13-year-long career. Juszczyk has recorded 305 receptions for over 2,800 yards and 20 receiving touchdowns, along with 234 rushing yards and six touchdowns. His Pro Bowl honors haul (10) is only one short of Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce (11). And in these 13 years, he has rarely missed time.

Numbers don’t do the fullback enough justice. As Niners Nation’s Kyle Posey noted, Juszczyk’s very presence in the San Francisco offense is a treat to defenses: there is no guarantee on where head coach Kyle Shanahan will ask him to line up. Posey reported that in 2024, the veteran took 201 snaps in the backfield, 84 at receiver, and 120 in the slot.

Most teams have also forgone the idea of keeping a fullback on the roster. But Juszczyk has shown the Niners that he can’t be done away with so easily.

“He can block anybody on the field,” star running back Christian McCaffrey said on The Pat McAfee Show. “He can block any scheme; you know, blocking somebody’s one thing, but doing it within the scheme and doing it the way the play is coached is a whole another thing. So his knowledge of football and understanding where to be and when to be there … He makes it really easy on a runner. That’s something that’s not a little thing at all.

“You see him catching, you know, double moves. You see him running clear routes. You see him catching the flat and getting 20 yards running wheels. Whatever it is, you know, he’s a complete football player.”

Last season, the 49ers topped the league in 2025 with 35.84 EPA, 21 explosive passes, and 19 explosive rushes in their core offensive groupings, per ESPN. Juszczyk’s contribution didn’t go unnoticed; he can practically do anything that Shanahan asks of him. Be it pass-catching or advancing the run game, he can still do it all.

“He is, in my opinion, one of one,” tight end George Kittle said at the end of the 2020 season. “I don’t know that anyone does the things that he does on the football field. I also think he’s incredibly underappreciated. But people who watch football, the people who understand football, they get how important Juice is.”

2026 is the last year on Kyle Juszczyk’s current contract. This extension alone proves that the Niners still have some place for the fullback in their plans. Perhaps if he operates at his usual, elite level, Juszczyk will be able to run it back one more time with San Francisco.