If there is 1 single list NFL teams might want to avoid landing any of their players on, it’s this.
Getting a player on Bleacher Report’s “10 Key Injuries to Monitor” before any season is a disaster. Getting 2 of them on there … double disaster.
That’s where the San Francisco 49ers sit headed into 2026 with 2 of their 3 most important players coming off devastating, season-ending injuries, with NFL All-Pro tight end George Kittle (torn Achilles tendon) and NFL All-Pro edge rusher Nick Bosa (torn ACL).
B/R’s Brad Gagnon wrote the 2 injuries could “deeply impact how the upcoming season plays out” — and he couldn’t be more right.
“San Francisco really needs a healthy season — something it seemingly has never experienced in franchise history,” Gagnon wrote on July 1. “Kittle’s presence is critical for that offense, as he’s Brock Purdy‘s experienced and reliable safety valve … they’ll want to count on Bosa to play a major role as soon as possible. Keep in mind that this defense produced a league-low 20 sacks last season, and 2025 first-round edge Mykel Williams is also rehabbing a November ACL tear. ”
49ers Paying Massive Money for Superstar Duo
The 49ers are paying through the teeth for Kittle and Bosa in 2026.
Kittle signed a 4-year, $76.4 million contract extension in April 2025, and it remains the biggest contract signed by a tight end in NFL history. The 49ers are working with a manageable cap hit of $14.1 million for Kittle in 2026, but that’s still a lot of money to pay someone who might not play.
Backup tight end Jake Tonges showed he was somewhat competent in 2025 with career highs of 34 receptions for 293 yards and 5 touchdowns and signed a 2-year, $8 million contract extension this offseason.
Bosa signed a 5-year, $170 million contract extension right before the 2023 season and comes with a $22.9 million cap hit — a number that jumps up to an incredible $54.8 million in 2027. That’s a lot of money to consider now that he’s suffered 2 season-ending ACL tears in his career — he only played 2 games in 2020 before suffering the same injury.
Together, those 2 contracts alone are on the 49ers’ books for almost a quarter-billion dollars — approximately $246.4 million.
George Kittle’s Impact Can’t Be Overstated
It’s not a stretch to say the 49ers are a dark-horse playoff candidate without Kittle and Bosa, but if they’re healthy, they make their team NFC contenders. They both have been that dominant over the course of their careers.
Kittle, a 7-time Pro Bowler and 5-time NFL All-Pro, is 3rd in franchise history with 8,008 receiving yards and cracked the NFL’s Top 10 career receiving list for tight ends in 2025 with 57 receptions for 628 yards and 7 touchdowns in just 11 games.
With 1 or 2 more standout seasons, Kittle could very well cement his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame once his career is over.
Bosa, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft, was 1 of the NFL’s dominant pass rushers for just 2 seasons. In 2021 and 2022, he had 34.0 sacks and 40 TFL. He led the NFL with 21 TFL in 2021 and led the NFL with 18.5 sacks in 2022 on the way to being named NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
In the years before and since, it’s been a study in diminishing returns. Bosa had just 10.5 sacks in 2023 and 9.0 sacks in 2024 in 14 games. Through 3 games before his injury in 2025, he had 2.0 sacks.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Injury Timeline for 49ers’ $246.4 Million Duo ‘Deeply Impacts’ Entire NFL appeared first on HEAVY.