George Kittle set to return for 49ers opener following remarkable 8-month recovery journey

The news the San Francisco 49ers have been waiting to hear about veteran tight end George Kittle is finally here.As the team is prepared to begin their season in a Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia on Friday, the 49ers have removed Kittle from their injury report, and he is now expected to play.Kittle, 32, suffered a ruptured Achilles injury during the Wild Card round against the Philadelphia Eagles, after logging his first catch of the game in the second quarter.In the game, he caught the ball but immediately started to hobble and was quickly tackled by an Eagles defender.San Francisco announced shortly after the game that Kittle injured his Achilles, putting an end to his season.Over the offseason, Kittle worked his way back to the field at an accelerated pace.The average timeframe to return from an Achilles injury is 9-12 months.He will be returning eight months after injuring it.Six months after he received the surgery, Kittle posted a video of himself working out from his home in Tennessee, where he was seen deadlifting 665 pounds.Near the end of training camp last month, the 49ers activated him from the team’s Active/Physically Unable to Perform list.Since then, he’s been a regular at 49ers practice and has been participating in team activities.His teammate Kyle Juszczyk told reporters on Wednesday that it’s been “incredible” watching him throughout his rehab process, as he noted that whenever they were hanging out during the offseason, Kittle was doing everything he could to complete his rehab.On Tuesday, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy called his road to recovery “remarkable.”With the 49ers happily embracing a Kittle return, they will take the field against the Rams at 10:35 a.m.

(local time) on Friday, and it will be aired on Netflix at 5:35 p.m.PT....