The San Francisco 49ers will have to play the remainder of the 2026 NFL playoffs without one of their best offensive weapons. Veteran tight end George Kittle tore his Achilles in the wild card round against the Philadelphia Eagles and was ruled out for the remainder of the playoffs.
This injury forces the 49ers to look for one of its depth tight ends to step up. None of them are expected to replicate Kittle's presence, but someone is going to have to at least be a competent option for quarterback Brock Purdy and head coach Kyle Shanahan's offense.
The most likely beneficiary of the Kittle injury will likely be backup tight end Jake Tonges. He filled in earlier this season when the starter was injured, and is expected to retain a bigger role as long as the 49ers stay alive in the postseason.
Here is more on Tonges, who takes over at tight end for the injured Kittle.
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Who is Jake Tonges?
Tonges was born on July 8, 1999 and is 26 years old. He and his family moved to California when he was growing up and attended Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, California, which is just southwest of San Jose.
Tonges then went to the University of California, Berkley for college before going undrafted in the 2022 NFL Draft. He signed as an undrafted free agent and has been in the league for four years, currently with the 49ers.
Jake Tonges college
Tonges attended Cal Berkely from 2017 to 2021. He redshirted his freshman year, not seeing any action the entire 2017 season. Over the rest of his time with the Golden Bears, Tonges played in 41 career games. He finished with 620 yards and four touchdowns on 47 receptions.
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Jake Tonges NFL Draft
Tonges went undrafted in the 2022 NFL Draft. He signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent. Tonges made the initial 53-man roster but was waived on November 10, 2022 and re-signed to the practice squad.
He was waived by Chicago ahead of the 2023 season but signed by San Francisco. Tonges spent most of the season on the practice squad, and then didn't register any stats in the 2024 season. His patience paid off, though, as the tight end finished the 2025 season with 293 yards and five touchdowns on 34 receptions.
49ers TE depth chart
| Position | Player |
| 1 | George Kittle -- IR |
| 2 | Jake Tonges |
| 3 | Luke Farrell |
| 4 | Brayden Willis |
| 5 | Hayden Rucci - practice squad |
When healthy, Kittle is the unquestioned TE1 for the 49ers. Any other tight end option would be used in multiple tight end sets behind Kittle.
Tonges figures to be the next man up. The offensive gameplan will likely have to be tweaked as Tonges has some big shoes to fill with Kittle sidelined, but he is still a serviceable option for quarterback Brock Purdy.
Farrell was a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He spent the entirety of his four-year rookie deal with Jacksonville before signing a three-year, $11 million deal with the Niners. Farrell is in the first year of his deal with San Francisco and had 85 yards and two touchdowns on 11 receptions during the regular season.
Willis played his college ball at Oklahoma from 2018 to 2022. He was drafted in the 7th round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the 49ers. So far in his career, Willis has played in 23 regular season games and has been targeted three times, but is still looking for his first career reception.
Rucci went undrafted in the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent his first season with the Miami Dolphins, and then signed with the Detroit Lions in the 2025 season. After getting waived, he returned to the Dolphins, but was waived again. He signed with the 49ers on January 14 for added depth after the Kittle injury. Rucci has not yet played in an NFL game.