George Kittles’ wife says 49ers star will return stronger after devastating injury in NFL playoffs
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George Kittle will not be in uniform when the San Francisco 49ers face the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC divisional round.
The seven-time Pro Bowl tight end was carted off the field in the second quarter of Sunday’s NFC wild-card game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Kittle was later diagnosed with an Achilles tendon injury.
Despite Kittle’s injury, the 49ers held off a late comeback to upset the defending champion Eagles. His wife, Claire, later shared a message of heartbreak but also optimism about his recovery.
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George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers leaves the field during the second quarter of an NFC Wild Card playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on January 11, 2026 in Philadelphia. (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
“The only thing I felt was disbelief and stillness as I screamed, get up, get up, over and over again. He always gets up. He’s George, he can do all the things. He just does it. It hurts. There’s no preparation for it. I love this man with everything I have in me. He’s a unicorn in this world, and he’ll come back stronger and better than ever,” Claire wrote in an Instagram post showing her and the 49ers star in the training room and on on the sidelines at Lincoln Financial Field.
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“The mind of a heartbroken athlete is determined. He is helpless, and so is this entire team. I am proud of these guys and the courage they fight with every week. It is a special year, you can feel it and we are not done yet. Thank you for loving G and carrying some of this pain for us,” she wrote.
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle greets his wife Claire Kittle before a preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on August 23, 2024 in Las Vegas. (Chris Unger/Getty Images)
George responded to Claire’s post with his own message of gratitude, commenting, “You are the best teammate for this journey.”
Kristin Juszczyk, the wife of Kittle’s teammate Kyle Juszczyk, also weighed in, writing, “Always proud to be a part of this family! For 85 years!!”
George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers leaves the field during the second quarter of an NFC Wild Card playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on January 11, 2026 in Philadelphia. (Elsa/Getty Images)
Kittle had to deal with injuries during the regular season, limiting him to 11 games. He still recorded 628 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.
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The Niners will also be without star defensive players Nick Bosa and Fred Warner when they start against the Seahawks on Saturday. San Francisco Pro Bowl offensive lineman Trent Williams said this season’s injuries built resilience.
“I think that made us stronger for things like this,” Williams said. “Kittle went down in the first half. I think if we didn’t have experience with that, it would have been easy for everyone to fold and no one would have blamed us. They would say, ‘Hey, they don’t have this player, they don’t have that player. They should probably lose.'”
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Chantz Martin is a sports writer for News Digital.