Who Should I Start? Jake Tonges or Jackson Hawes

Wednesday, March 11, 12:05 PM

The San Francisco 49ers and tight end Jake Tonges agreed to a new two-year contract for $8 million on Wednesday, agent Steve Caric told Adam Schefter of ESPN. The deal includes $5.5 million guaranteed. Tonges had the best year of his career in 2025 in his third year in the NFL and second in the Bay Area, filling in nicely as the team's top pass-catching tight end when George Kittle was sidelined due to injury. The 26-year-old caught 34 of his 46 targets for 293 yards and five touchdowns in 17 regular-season games (two starts) after not having a single catch in his first two NFL seasons. Tonges went undrafted out of Cal before debuting in the NFL in 2022 with the Chicago Bears. Kittle is recovering from a torn Achilles that he suffered in the postseason, so he almost certainly won't be ready for the start of the 2026 regular season. Tonges showed last year that he has the ability to be a valuable sleeper TE in a good offense with Kittle sidelined.