Although the San Francisco 49ers are at 4-2, they have been without their tight end, George Kittle, for the last five games. Kittle injured his right hamstring while running a deep route down against the Seattle Seahawks in the first week. We now have an update on his return.

“#49ers George Kittle + #Buccaneers Mike Evans – Both likely returning quickly to pre-injury form. Avg timeline to pre-injury stats = 1-2 wks. HIGH re-injury risk given age + histories,” Harvard-trained sports surgeon Deepak Chona tweeted. How did the 32-year-old get injured?

The injury occurred after Kittle had played 22 snaps, with 10:06 left in the second quarter of the Week 1 game. He was then placed on injured reserve and missed five straight games. He hasn’t missed this many games since 2020, when he was out for eight games with foot and knee issues.

Although Kittle was eligible to return in the Tampa Bay game (having satisfied the four-game IR minimum), the team did not activate him, so he remained sidelined. But this week brings some hopeful news.

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This week, there was some hopeful news regarding Kittle’s return as his 21-day practice window was opened. This signals that he may return against the Week 7 game against the Atlanta Falcons. But the 49ers limited Kittle’s participation in both Wednesday and Thursday’s practice sessions,

“I fully plan on playing on Sunday,” Kittle said. “As long as Kyle lets me. It’s up to him. But hopefully I’m out there. Which I think I will be.” What makes things better here is that even Shanahan is hopeful about Kittle’s return. “That’s the hope,” Shanahan said regarding Kittle’s return.

Kittle also appeared before the media on Thursday for the first time after his hamstring injury and mentioned that he knew something was wrong right after the injury. “I just felt like a rubber band snapped in my hamstring.” 

Although Kittle has been a great asset to the 49ers ever since being drafted in 2017, his injuries have been an issue throughout his career. In nine seasons, Kittle has missed 23 games for injuries like calf strain, foot fracture, and many more.

Kittle’s return has both excitement and room for roster change

Kittle’s return to the roster has energized the locker room, and plenty of players are excited about it.

“George is awesome. He’s just great energy in the huddle, and he’s just George,” quarterback Mac Jones said. But his return will mean that the 49ers will have to rethink their roster strategy.

If George Kittle returns from injury, the next question is who will be passing him the ball. Based on recent reports, Mac Jones is most “likely” expected to take over as the starting quarterback while Brock Purdy continues to recover from a toe injury. The 49ers are also dealing with other setbacks.

Linebacker Fred Warner is nursing a right ankle injury that could be season-ending, while wide receivers Marquez Valdes-Scantling (calf) and Ricky Pearsall (knee) have been limited or absent from recent practices.

The new update on Kittle’s injury has both a glimmer of hope and a sprinkle of concern. Both Kittle and Shanahan look hopeful about the return, but it will be up to the team to decide whether to rush the recovery (given his high re-injury risk) or take things slowly and give Kittle more time.