49ers TE George Kittle jabs at NFL ‘scriptwriters’ for setting up massive Ravens-Niners matchup

When the NFL released its 2023 schedule on May 8, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy had not yet been cleared to throw a football.

The Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson were two weeks removed from settling a prolonged contract dispute.

Questions circled both franchises.

Would Purdy recover from a Jan. 29 UCL tear in time for the start of the season? And even if he were healthy enough to throw, how much would Mr. Irrelevant’s rookie magic come to reflect beginner’s luck, and how much would it come to portend one of the NFL’s next greats?

Jackson, too, had missed the close of the 2022 season after spraining his knee. Beyond his recovery, the Ravens had dismissed offensive coordinator Greg Roman and hired Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken. How quickly could Jackson and his teammates adjust to a new system?

Fast-forward to December, and the NFL’s schedule-makers have gifted fans a heavyweight Christmas Day matchup. The NFC’s top-seeded 49ers will host the AFC's top-seeded Ravens on Monday night in a face-off of 11-3 squads.

This will mark only the third time since the 1970 NFL merger that the NFC and AFC teams with the best outright record in their respective conferences will face off in December or later, according to league data.

Eighteen years ago, the Indianapolis Colts (then 13-1) and Seattle Seahawks (12-2) faced off in Week 16 of the 2005 season. In 1977, the Denver Broncos (12-1) and Dallas Cowboys (11-2) met in Week 14.

Each of those times, the NFC squad won the game and the conference. The Seahawks ultimately lost the Super Bowl following the 2005 season while the Cowboys won the 1977 season title.

Four-time Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle would no doubt welcome that NFC trend continuing. Still, he jabbed at the cinematic scheduling.

Is the drama almost too good to be true? San Francisco's four-time Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle couldn’t resist poking fun.

“I want to hand it to the NFL scriptwriters,” Kittle told Yahoo Sports this week over Zoom. “Like, great job. Christmas Day, 'Monday Night Football' and you got the two [No. 1] seeds going at it? You couldn't have done that one any better.

“Wow. It makes you think just a little bit.”

Jokes and fanfare surrounding NFL conspiracies exploded early this calendar year after retired Pro Bowl running back Arian Foster went along with a podcast barb that the NFL is rigged.

“We were really dedicated to it, so it was moreso that’s what practice was about: practicing the script,” Foster said. “We know what’s gonna happen, but you still gotta put on a show.”

The NFL leaned into the theory, releasing commercials this fall featuring players reviewing their league-provided scripts.

This Ravens-49ers matchup dangles playoff-caliber football.

Purdy is currently the betting favorite for MVP, at -225, while Jackson slots second at +600, per BetMGM. The game is also poised to feature the third-hottest MVP candidate after 49ers all-purpose weapon Christian McCaffrey jumped quarterbacks Dak Prescott, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts in odds this week.

Purdy has posted a league-best 119.0 passer rating, 29 passing touchdowns and 7.6% passing touchdown percentage. Jackson’s 96.5 passer rating ranks eighth in the league, and he has scored 17 passing touchdowns along with five rushing touchdowns in dual-threat performances.

“Just watching them throughout the season, I know their defense is playing at an incredibly high level, and Lamar is Lamar,” Kittle said. “He’s a former MVP, should be consistently in that talk. For some reason, people always talk down on him. But Lamar, every time he touches the ball could be a touchdown. He's insane, whether it's his legs or his cannon of an arm.”

Each team is fighting to secure a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the playoffs if they maintain their seeding. The Ravens can clinch the AFC North title this week if they win and the Cleveland Browns lose or tie, or if the Ravens tie and the Browns lose.

The 49ers clinched the NFC West last week and could clinch the No. 1 seed as soon as this week. The Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions would all need to lose for a Niners win to lock up the spot.

The 49ers are 4.5-point favorites at home Monday.

“To get us ready for the postseason, it's going to be huge,” Kittle said. “I’m not going to say, ‘Hey, it's a must-win' or something like that. Yeah, of course, we're going to want to win. But it's just, ‘Hey, how well are you going to play now, and how ready are you to really continue this fight and through the playoffs?’

“The 1-seed versus 1-seed, those are two teams that are playing good football in December. And that's the football that you want to see.”