When you think about the San Francisco 49ers‘ top receivers in the clutch, most would think of players like Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle.
While the 49ers do have two of the NFL’s most reliable outlets when pressure forces the quarterback off schedule, it’s not McCaffrey nor Kittle.
Advertisement
According to new data from Pro Football Focus, free-agent acquisition Mike Evans and 2025 breakout tight end Jake Tonges ranked among the league’s most-targeted pass-catchers when opposing defenses generated pressure during the 2025 season. Evans finished fifth in that category, while Tonges was not far behind at eighth.
Evans posted a 22.2% target rate under pressure last season while with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, tied for the fifth-highest mark in the league. Injuries plagued what could have been his 12th-consecutive 1,000-yard season, but Evans’ reliability in pressure situations should never be questioned. While his overall volume stats didn’t turn heads, Evans made every opportunity count, hauling in a perfect 100% of his catchable targets and over 66% of his contested targets when his quarterback was pressured. That’s a skill set Evans now brings with him to Kyle Shanahan’s offense for quarterback Brock Purdy to enjoy.
Tonges, meanwhile, ranked eighth among pass-catchers with a 21.6% target rate under pressure, adding a 1.19 yards-per-route-run average and a 121.6 passer rating when targeted in those situations. The undrafted breakout caught 40 passes for 366 yards and five touchdowns across 17 games, stepping up while Kittle battled injury. San Francisco rewarded that production with a two-year, $8 million extension in March, including $5.5 million guaranteed.
The pairing gives Shanahan and his quarterbacks a pair of built-in answers no matter how a pocket collapses — one a proven veteran, the other a homegrown weapon who’s earned every bit of his new deal.
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers have two of NFL’s top 10 safety-net weapons from 2025
