Opening weekend of the 2023 NFL season will showcase the San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers. It is going to be a tremendous matchup against two very young and talented teams. Two of the stars of these teams are 49ers tight end George Kittle and Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt. Both are among the very elite at their position.
The two will also butt heads in this game as Kittle attempts to keep either Brock Purdy or Trey Lance safe from the onslaught of Watt’s pass rush. it is a challenge Kittle is more than happy to accept.
Never one to be humble, Kittle said recently that he thinks he can shut down any defender including Watt as a pass protector.
“If it comes to blocking, I’ll toot my own horn,” Kittle said. That’s just stuff I practice my entire offseason. I take all the reps in-season. Like I’m very prideful when it comes to that stuff. When it’s like second down and they’re like, ‘Hey, it’s pass-15 weak, you’re one-on-one versus a Cam Jordan. You’re one-on-one versus T.J. Watt, go for it.’ I’m not like, ‘Yeah, like hey, he gets paid millions of dollars to rush the passer.’ But I look at it as an opportunity for me to be like, ‘You’re not going to be able to get past me,’ and I’m very excited about that.”
The truth is there aren’t many offensive tackles who can consistently win against Watt so if Kittle plans to shut him down, he will have to make the most of every opportunity.
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