George Kittle Explains Why His Stats are Down

I asked Kittle about this strange development Friday in the 49ers locker room.

SANTA CLARA -- George Kittle almost always plays well in prime time, which bodes well for the 49ers, who play the Vikings on Monday Night Football this week.

But in two of his past three games, he has caught just one pass. That's strange for such a dominant tight end.

I asked Kittle about this strange development Friday in the 49ers locker room.

ME: You've had one catch in two of your past three games. Is that a function of the game plan? Is that Brock Purdy freezing you out?

KITTLE: "One hundred percent Brock freezing me out. That's a good one. You know, game plan - we've gone against a lot of really good defensive lines, and we're trying to do our best to not let something happen like T.J. Watt getting three sacks against us. If my catches diminish to help the team win, I don't really care. My goal is to win a Super Bowl. Accolades come after that. It is what it is. I'm going to be out there, I'm going to be chipping, blocking, catching balls, scoring touchdowns -- whatever they ask me to do, I'm going to do it. Would I prefer to have five targets over one target? Sure. Any tight end would. But if that's not in the game plan, then it's not in the game plan, and it's alright."

MY TAKE: Kittle is sacrificing his numbers to stay in and block and help 49ers right tackle Colton McKivitz, who gave up three sacks to T.J. Watt back in Week 1. When it's a nationally televised game, the 49ers throw Kittle the ball and make him feel like a star. But other weeks, they make him do the dirty work, and he enjoys it.

Respect.