San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle fought through injuries to help his team reach the Super Bowl in 2023. Now the star pass catcher is on track for a full recovery ahead of the 2024 campaign, but only after losing nearly 30 pounds due to offseason core surgery, Kittle revealed recently on "Bussin' With The Boys."
"I couldn't lift," Kittle said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. "I couldn't do any upper-body [work] because of my shoulder and my rib, and I couldn't do lower [body work] because of my core surgery. ... I didn't lift from the Super Bowl until, like, almost mid-March. ... I went a month without doing anything."
Kittle, who played last season listed at 250 pounds, added that he's "feeling great now" and believe he's "almost back to 100 percent." He still hopes to gain about 10 pounds before the start of the season.
Injuries have affected Kittle, 30, throughout his NFL career, costing him multiple games in four of his last five seasons. The five-time Pro Bowler has remained one of the league's top players at his position, however, eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards three different times, including in 2023. One of Brock Purdy's favorite targets during San Francisco's most recent title bid, Kittle averaged a career-best 15.7 yards per catch last year.
