SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers star tight end George Kittle was taken off the physically unable to perform list on Sunday, providing hope that he might be able to return from a ruptured right Achilles tendon before the season opener.
The 49ers got good news on the injury front 10 days before the team was set to depart for Australia for a Week 1 game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sept. 11 with both Kittle and All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey both back at practice.
The Niners are scheduled to leave for Australia on Sept. 2 and Kittle said last week that he needed to get practice time in pads before then to determine whether he would make the trip and try to play Week 1.
Kittle ruptured his Achilles on Jan. 11 in a playoff win at Philadelphia and has made an impressive recovery to get back on the field in less than eight months.
Kittle is a two-time All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler who is a key part of San Francisco’s offense as a passing threat and a blocker in the run game. He had 57 catches for 628 yards receiving and seven touchdowns last season.
McCaffrey had missed the past two weeks of practice with what the team had described as “tightness.” After being limited to four games because of injuries in 2024, McCaffrey was an ironman last season. He played 1,010 offensive snaps in the regular season and playoffs — just the ninth running back in the past 20 seasons to top the 1,000 mark — and became the second player in the past decade with at least 450 combined carries and catches.
The 30-year-old McCaffrey hasn’t responded well in the past following his heaviest-use seasons. The previous two times he topped 400 touches — in 2019 with Carolina and 2023 with the 49ers — he was severely hampered by injuries the following season, missing 13 games each in 2020 and 2024.
Star defensive end Nick Bosa remains out of practice with soreness and tendinitis in his surgically repaired right knee. Bosa tore his right ACL in Week 3 last season. He started camp on the active roster but has only participated in individual drills before being shut down nearly three weeks ago. The Niners have expressed optimism that he will be ready for Week 1.
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San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey stands on the sideline before a preseason NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Kelley L. Cox)
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle waves before a preseason NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Kelley L. Cox)
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) talks with tight end George Kittle during a joint NFL football practice with the Los Angeles Chargers, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026, in El Segundo, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
ZANDVOORT, Netherlands (AP) — Mercedes boss Toto Wolff defended the use of team orders in the Formula 1 title fight after George Russell protested when he was asked to give up second place in the Dutch Grand Prix to teammate Kimi Antonelli.
Over team radio, Russell questioned the call to let Antonelli past in the final stages of Sunday's race, suggesting it left him vulnerable to Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton behind with little to gain for the team. Antonelli was on fresher tires but eventual winner Lando Norris was far ahead.
Russell, who held off Hamilton to keep third, relented after the race and said his teammate and title rival Antonelli “deserved to finish ahead."
“Team orders are always harsh from one driver’s perspective,” Mercedes team principal Wolff said, arguing that not swapping positions would have left both drivers a target for Hamilton. “We’re not losing time with each other if there are competitors breathing down our neck. We’ve seen it with the Ferraris at the beginning of the year in Shanghai, you just lose so much race time, you risk losing more points.”
Antonelli had been ahead of Russell earlier in the race before Mercedes brought him in for fresh tires and that was another reason for the switch, Wolff added.
“Today, it wasn’t a very difficult call, because Kimi was running second, clear of George, and that’s basically the order we restored after the stop. So, a completely normal modus operandi, and we would have done it the other way around also,” he said.
Antonelli, who turns 20 on Tuesday, faces another obstacle in his quest to become F1's youngest-ever champion.
He will need to take a hefty grid penalty at his home Italian Grand Prix in two weeks' time as Mercedes plans to swap his car's power unit to head off potential reliability problems in the second half of the season. That will put Antonelli over his allowance of key components for the year.
“Our theory, our calculations say that that’s the best track to take it. Obviously, our algorithms don’t take the nationality into consideration,” Wolff said. “We’re here to fight for a championship and not the most PR, so that’s what we’re going to do.”
Monza is a high speed track where Mercedes' engine is likely to be strong, and overtaking is relatively easy, giving Antonelli a chance to make up places. He's accepted the decision.
“I think it still will give me a chance to do a great result and bring home good points,” he said.
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From the left, second-placed Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy, first -placed McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain and third-placed Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain spray champagne at the podium during the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain makes a pit stop during the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post, Pool)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy waves for the podium after taking the seond place at the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
