George Kittle Wants to Stay with 49ers 'As Long as I Possibly Can' After New Contract

After signing a new contract in the offseason, George Kittle hopes to be with the San Francisco 49ers for many years to come.

Speaking to ESPN's Nick Wagoner, Kittle explained why being with the 49ers for "as long as I possibly can" is something that motivates him.

"It's somewhere that I want to be for as long as I possibly can be because I go to work every single morning and I look up and I'm walking into Levi's Stadium as my office," Kittle said. "I am just so beyond lucky and I am so happy to be able to be here for longer."

Kittle signed a four-year, $76.4 million extension with the Niners in April. The deal keeps him under contract through his age-36 season in 2029.

It wasn't totally clear that Kittle would even be back with the 49ers next season prior to signing his extension. They received trade offers for the All-Pro tight end leading up to the draft, including one for a second-round pick, but the team turned it down.

Even though Kittle is on the wrong side of 30, he remains incredibly productive and extremely important to the infrastructure of head coach Kyle Shanahan's offense.

Kittle is coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and leads all tight ends with 25 touchdown receptions since 2022.

On top of his production as a receiver, Kittle is a high-level blocker for a team that doesn't have a lot of depth along the offensive line.

The 49ers are the only team Kittle has ever played for in the NFL. He was a fifth-round draft pick out of Iowa in 2017 and has been one of the most dominant players at his position ever since. He has been selected to the All-Pro team five times, including two first-team appearances.

Kittle is two seasons away from joining a group of 51 players who have spent at least 10 years with the 49ers. The last player to reach that mark was Joe Staley in 2016.

If Kittle plays out his entire contract, he will have spent 13 seasons with the 49ers. Staley, Jerry Rice, Steve Young, Joe Montana and Bryant Young are among the franchise legends who played at least 13 seasons with the club.

Montana, Rice, Bryant Young and Steve Young are Pro Football Hall of Famers. Kittle is on that trajectory with how he has played in the first eight seasons of his career.