Joe Fann had a really interesting article on Kyle Juszczyk this week Weston Richburg Jersey[/url] , featuring this intriguing quote: Not just a tight end — Juice was a two-time All American at Harvard. But he had no chance to play that position in the NFL, despite 22 receiving touchdowns in college, because he’s 6’ 1”.Fullbacks are disappearing fr om the NFL, because GMs don’t want to give a precious roster slot to someone unlikely to touch the ball. The job is being divvied up between running backs (5’9” to 6’2”) and tight ends (6’4 to 6’7”), but blocking is a secondary skill at both positions. “Move” tight ends — i.e. big guys who can’t block — are increasingly common, and no one expects an RB to lead block on running plays. Running backs are supposed to protect the quarterback in passing situations (third down) while providing a check down receiving option, but again neither skill is their primary job requirement and a lot of them aren’t that good at one or both of them.Because of his height, Juszczyk is a “tweener,” in between the ideal size for two different positions, and NFL talent scouts hate tweeners. To be fair, a lot of tweeners who were great in college don’t cut it in the pros, because size + speed is a real thing, Sometimes they just get pushed around.Juszczyk got lucky because Kyle Shanahan, and his mentor Gary Kubiak — the OC at Baltimore when they first started Juice in 2014 — realized that fullback is kind of a tweener position these days, and the Harvard kid fits it perfectly. He’s tough enough to lead block on runs, quick and mobile enough to pass block, and flexible enough to line up at any pass-eligible position. (He’s even the team’s emergency quarterback.)But most GMs couldn‘t see beyond his (lack of) height. Juice has 255 yards receiving this year, more than WRs Martavis Bryant, Laquon Treadwell or Doug Baldwin, while blocking better than any of them. He has played almost two-thirds of the Niners’ snaps and rivals Marquise Goodwin and Matt Breida for explosion play potential, even as he personally springs Breida for his big runs with key blocks at the second level. But height-bias nearly kept him out of the league altogether.This is even more of an issue at quarterback, where college prospects 6’2” or less are routinely dismissed (except for the odd Drew Brees, Russell Wilson, or Nick Mullens who sneaks through and establishes himself as an NFL superstar).Again, these personnel evaluators are not crazy. Height is a real thing for QBs, When I was covering Michael Vick in Philly, there were many situations where he just literally couldn’t see over the various linemen and ran outside the pocket, not because of “happy feet” but just to see who was open.My theory is that some of the heroic, shorter college quarterbacks — like Johnny Manziel or Vernon Adams, Jr. — catch our eye because their size forces them to take wild chances. When those pay off Colin Kaepernick Jersey[/url] , it’s impossible not to get excited. But “hanging on for dear life” in college turns into “just getting smothered” in the pros, where everyone is yet bigger, stronger and faster.But height is not the only thing that makes a QB good. (Just ask Brock Osweiler.) Niners fans are well aware that the abilities to read defenses, find open receivers, throw with a quick motion, and deliver the ball accurately are at least as important as stature. How many potentially great quarterbacks never get a chance — or are converted to wide receiver, wh ere 6’2” is big —because of rigid conceptions about height, while absolute stiffs like Christian Hackenberg get chance after chance?If Jimmy Garoppolo was 6’4”, he probably would never have been a backup quarterback and fallen into the 49ers clutches. Some really bad team would have drafted him in the top 10, and he’d be the injury-addled QB for Tampa Bay, or someone like that.The situation is a shame, but it’s also an opportunity for GMs and coaches able to see past the trite clichs of NFL size requirements. The Niners might have not one, but two great quarterbacks — and an all time great fullback — on their roster right now because Lynch and Shanahan don’t share the league’s blind bias against short players. SANTA CLARA, Calif. Getting a Twitter follow from Travis Kelce was one of the major accomplishments this season for San Francisco 49ers second-year tight end George Kittle.Now heading into the final game of the season, Kittle is in a battle for Kelce in a race for the most productive season ever for a tight end.Kelce goes into Kansas City’s season finale against Oakland with 1,274 yards receiving, the fourth-most ever for a tight end. He needs 54 yards against the Raiders to break the mark set by New England’s Rob Gronkowski in 2011.But Kelce might need more than that to hold off Kittle, who goes into San Francisco’s finale against the Los Angeles Rams with 1,228 yards on the season and a chance to pass not only Gronkowski but also Kelce with a big game.Kelce and Kittle have put up their huge numbers this season in very different ways. Kelce is more a downfield threat, with his average catch coming 7.5 yards beyond the line of scrimmage, a number comparable to some of the most productive receivers in the league like Antonio Brown and Michael Thomas.Kittle does most of his work after the catch, gaining an average of 9.8 yards after making the catch %?a number surpassed only by four running backs who make their average catch in the backfield.Kittle has 775 yards in all after the catch, trailing only Carolina running back Christian McCaffrey with 824. The only other players since at least 2010 with more yards after the catch in a season are Le’Veon Bell (816 in 2014) and Matt Forte (788 in 2014).“The thing he is doing better, that I can say he has done better than any tight end I have had, is what he is doing after the catch,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “He does a good job beating man coverage, and does a good job in his routes and does a great job blocking. But when that ball is in the air, the play is just starting. He is trying to catch it. He runs angry and runs confidently, that he expects to score on every look.”