The San Francisco 49ers gutted out a tough win against the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, on Sunday in the Wild Card round, in a game where both offenses struggled immensely.
Unfortunately for the Niners and star quarterback Brock Purdy, they’ll now have to face the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday, not only dealing with a short week of rest, but also without one of Purdy’s most important offensive weapons and the Niners’ emotional leader.
“49ers HC Kyle Shanahan confirmed to reporters that George Kittle did in fact tear his Achilles,” reported ESPN’s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter.
49ers HC Kyle Shanahan confirmed to reporters that George Kittle did in fact tear his Achilles. pic.twitter.com/K1YxsmcmM5
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 12, 2026
The 49ers community reacted to the news on social media.
“The heart and soul of this team. … He’s somebody that even (after getting hurt), he was the first guy in the locker room smiling, bumping music, happy for his teammates. … “We’re gonna play for him the rest of the way,” said star running back Christian McCaffrey of the injury.
“Going to be tough without him big loss,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
“he should consider retiring and going for broadcasting maybe,” someoen else added.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Niners and Purdy look without such a key piece of their offense for the rest of the playoffs.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.