George Kittle gives clear message about contracts for NFL tight ends: “I think we should be making more money”

The San Francisco 49ers recently made George Kittle the highest-paid tight end in the NFL with a four-year, $76.4 million contract extension, surpassing Arizona Cardinals’ Trey McBride’s $19 million per year contract. After inking the deal, Kittle expressed his desire for the tight end position to be valued more in general.

“I think we should be making more money”

On “The Dan Patrick Show”, Kittle expressed his desire for other tight ends to keep raising the market, emphasizing that growth requires multiple players earning top salaries.

“The only way for the tight end market to continue to grow is if everybody’s getting paid,” Kittle said. “That’s the only way to do it. You can’t just have one guy do it and then it just sits for four years because then you’re stuck and it’s stagnant and no one’s getting paid.”

As a co-founder of Tight End University, Kittle believes the position remains undervalued despite its crucial role in both passing and running games. He hopes future stars like Brock Bowers will push the market even higher, predicting Bowers could earn over $20 million annually.

“When Tight End U started, I think the top of the market was 15 [million dollars], and now we’re almost at 20,” he said. “So we’re continually growing it. As a tight end and as a position who does everything, yeah, I think we should be making more money, but we’re working on it.”

While wide receivers have seen massive contract growth, tight ends have lagged behind. However, with emerging talents like Sam LaPorta, Kyle Pitts, Dalton Kincaid, and others, there’s potential for the tight end market to catch up - if their performance justifies it.

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