Neymar played 90 minutes against Costa Rica, and was involved in a controversial penalty review, before eventually scoring the second goal deep into added time.
"He is resuming a process," Tite said.
"He played the full match. He is a human being, he needs some time to resume his high standard. Before then there is a team that has to be strong and not depend on him."
There was relief around the Brazil camp when Coutinho finally found the opening goal in the 91st minute, as they looked to be heading to another uninspiring draw. The manager himself was jumping for joy on the pitch.
"I think I kind of pulled a muscle!" Tite continued.
"I'm limping now after the celebration. We were a bit over-excited."