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The San Francisco 49ers’ practice facility theory that being located next to an electrical substation causes an increase in injuries remains alive after tight end George Kittle’s comments during a recent interview.
Kittle, who suffered a torn Achilles in the 49ers’ Wild Card Round loss to the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks, spoke to Complex on Wednesday when asked about that theory.
While Kittle doesn’t believe that’s true, he wants further investigation into it because of something he noticed during his rookie year in 2017.
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George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers is run off the field in the second quarter of the NFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on January 11, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
When Kittle was focused on making an impact with his NFL team, one of his veteran teammates pointed out that the trees between the team’s facility and the substation never grew the leaves they were supposed to throughout the year.
The NFL had the trees cut down this year, Kittle added.
“(The trees aren’t) there anymore so no one can see them,” Kittle said. “So, only us vets know that was the truth. I don’t think anyone has talked about it yet. That one confused me.”
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Again, Kittle doesn’t believe the rumors are true, but he also wants a definitive answer. He added that teammate Kyle Juszczyk and others feel the same way.
“As a professional athlete, you’re always trying to get one percent better. If something affects you negatively 0.25%, you want to know about it. All we’re saying as players is we want them to look into it to make sure it’s nothing,” Kittle said.
To support Kittle’s point that the substation doesn’t hurt the players, he noted Fred Warner, who suffered a broken ankle in October that knocked him out for the season. Warner trains at the facility year-round and the ankle injury was the only serious injury he has had in his career.
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) looks on during San Francisco 49ers minicamp on June 10, 2025 at the SAP Performance Facility in Santa Clara, California. (Matthew Huang/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Pakinomist Digital also spoke with some of Kittle’s teammates during Super Bowl LX week, including Warner, Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey, all of whom were pleased with the facility.
“Dude, I’m not a scientist and I’m not a doctor. Look, we play anywhere. You know, for us, I think these are things that a lot of people smarter than me can talk about,” McCaffrey told Pakinomist Digital on the radio set.
“All I know is, you know there’s too many variables in football to just say something like that is the cause of injuries. I mean, you can do everything right and bad things can still happen, so.”
The theory, which has now gone viral, suggests that the 49ers’ unusually high number of soft-tissue and non-contact injuries may be due to the electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from the substation. The claim is that being around the substation for years can weaken tendons and soft tissue, leading to serious injuries like an ACL or Achilles tear.
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) watches from the sideline during the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Levi’s Stadium on Aug. 9, 2025. (David Gonzales/Imagn Images)
McCaffrey, Kittle, Purdy, Nick Bosa, Dre Greenlaw, Ricky Pearsall and several others have dealt with the type of injuries over the past few seasons that the theory suggests.
ESPN reported in January that the team plans to investigate all theories, not just the one involving the substation, this offseason to determine why their injury list was so long in 2025.
