George Kittle is a great tight end. But as I look at what he’s done around the goal line, it’s hard for me to consider ranking him ahead of Travis Kelce. Kittle hasn’t been effective in that part of the field.
Two years in a row Kittle has caught 85-plus passes, but he’s caught only 5 TDs in each of those seasons. Remarkably, half of those touchdowns have come from 30-plus yards – unlikely range for a tight end.
Around the goal line, they’ve struggled to get him the ball. Three years in a row he’s caught only 2 TDs when the 49ers have been inside the 10-yard line.
As a pro, Kittle has been the intended target on 26 passes inside the 10. Only 7 of those balls have resulted in scores (6 touchdowns and a 2-point conversion). Six others have been completed, but short of the goal line.
Another one of the league’s elite tight ends – Zach Ertz – has been the most effective pass catcher in this part of the field, scoring on 15 of 24 passes.
Over the past three years, 30 players have seen at least 20 targets in that part of the field. Of that group, only JuJu Smith-Schuster has been less effective at scoring touchdowns.
| RECEIVING INSIDE THE 10 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Tgt | Com | Pct | TD | 2Pt | EZ% |
| Zach Ertz, Phil. | 24 | 18 | 75% | 14 | 1 | 63% |
| Alshon Jeffery, Phil. | 23 | 15 | 65% | 11 | 3 | 61% |
| Davante Adams, G.B. | 22 | 15 | 68% | 11 | 2 | 59% |
| Antonio Brown, Pitt.-N.E. | 21 | 11 | 52% | 9 | 1 | 48% |
| DeAndre Hopkins, Hou. | 32 | 19 | 59% | 14 | 1 | 47% |
| Austin Hooper, Atl. | 28 | 18 | 64% | 11 | 2 | 46% |
| Kyle Rudolph, Min. | 24 | 15 | 63% | 10 | 1 | 46% |
| Michael Thomas, N.O. | 33 | 23 | 70% | 15 | 0 | 45% |
| Michael Crabtree, 3 tms | 20 | 10 | 50% | 7 | 2 | 45% |
| Christian McCaffrey, Car. | 21 | 16 | 76% | 9 | 0 | 43% |
| Jarvis Landry, Mia.-Cle. | 33 | 21 | 64% | 14 | 0 | 42% |
| Marvin Jones, Det. | 24 | 11 | 46% | 10 | 0 | 42% |
| Jimmy Graham, Sea.-G.B. | 29 | 13 | 45% | 11 | 1 | 41% |
| Nelson Agholor, Phil. | 20 | 14 | 70% | 7 | 1 | 40% |
| Cooper Kupp, LAR | 25 | 16 | 64% | 10 | 0 | 40% |
| Adam Thielen, Min. | 20 | 9 | 45% | 7 | 1 | 40% |
| Mike Williams, LAC | 20 | 9 | 45% | 7 | 1 | 40% |
| Brandin Cooks, 3 tms | 21 | 13 | 62% | 7 | 1 | 38% |
| Chris Godwin, T.B. | 28 | 13 | 46% | 8 | 2 | 36% |
| Travis Kelce, K.C. | 28 | 13 | 46% | 10 | 0 | 36% |
| Kenny Golladay, Det. | 28 | 12 | 43% | 10 | 0 | 36% |
| Mike Evans, T.B. | 29 | 10 | 34% | 8 | 2 | 34% |
| Sterling Shepard, NYG | 21 | 12 | 57% | 5 | 2 | 33% |
| Julian Edelman, N.E. | 21 | 12 | 57% | 6 | 1 | 33% |
| Antonio Gates, LAC | 21 | 7 | 33% | 5 | 2 | 33% |
| Julio Jones, Atl. | 27 | 14 | 52% | 8 | 0 | 30% |
| Larry Fitzgerald, Ariz. | 24 | 13 | 54% | 5 | 2 | 29% |
| Keenan Allen, LAC | 31 | 16 | 52% | 9 | 0 | 29% |
| George Kittle, S.F. | 26 | 13 | 50% | 6 | 1 | 27% |
| JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pitt. | 21 | 10 | 48% | 5 | 0 | 24% |
—Ian Allan