Fantasy Football Player Notes

McCaffrey's 2024 season was derailed by bilateral Achilles tendonitis. Yes, I know it crushed many fantasy teams. Yes, I know that if you drafted him last year, you're probably saying, "hell no...I won't be walking down that road again." I'll get this out of the way quickly. I'm back in. George Kittle had similar issues with his Achilles, but after he received stem cell infusions, it hasn't remained a problem. McCaffrey had a similar treatment last year and enters this season fully healthy from all reports. In the small sample we got from McCaffrey last year, his numbers remained strong. In the three full games he played, he averaged 18.6 touches and 93.7 total yards, all while playing 81-94% of the snaps. McCaffrey's 22% missed tackle forced rate and his 1.80 yards per route run were strong (per Fantasy Points Data). Among those two statistical categories, McCaffrey ranked eighth-best (70 qualifying backs) and sixth-best (53 qualifying backs). McCaffrey has at least one more big season left. I'll be investing heavily in him for 2025.

Kittle remains an elite option at the tight end position and doesn't look to be slowing down anytime soon. Kittle finished last year as the TE1 in fantasy points per game, and it's like no one cares as they rank him as the third tight end in fantasy heading into 2025. Deebo Samuel is gone. Brandon Aiyuk's health and effectiveness are up in the air for 2025. Will Jauan Jennings continue his breakout, or will Ricky Pearsall fulfill the promise of his draft capital? There are a ton of questions in the 49ers' passing attack in 2025, but Kittle isn't one of them. He has been excellent and should continue that string of fantasy dominance. Last year, Kittle ranked sixth in target share, first in yards per route run, third in yards after the catch per reception, and second in first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). He was also flooded with high-leverage usage, ranking fifth in deep targets and second in red zone targets among tight ends. Kittle could see more volume in 2025 and repeat as the TE1.

Jauan Jennings delivered a surprise Year 5 breakout in 2024, finishing as the WR25 overall with 77 catches, 975 yards, and 6 TDs in an injury-riddled 49ers WR room. From Week 8 on, Jennings averaged over 8 targets per game, a 25% target share, and 13.7 expected fantasy points - fueled by a 33% first-read target rate. He ranked 14th in yards per route run (2.26) and led all 49ers WRs in red-zone targets. With Deebo Samuel gone and Brandon Aiyuk recovering from a torn ACL, Jennings is set up for a major role in 2025. Brock Purdy trusts him, and so does new OC Klint Kubiak, who views Jennings as a true No. 1 option with Aiyuk sidelined.

Brock Purdy continues to hum along as a QB1 in fantasy after finishing as the QB10 and QB6 in fantasy points per game over the last two seasons. Last year, Purdy flashed some rushing upside, too, as he ranked 11th in rushing yards and seventh in rushing scores among quarterbacks. Last year, he ranked third in yards per attempt, ninth in CPOE, and tenth in fantasy points per dropback. While Brandon Aiyuk could get off to a slow start this season, Purdy still has plenty of weapons at his disposal with Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Ricky Pearsall, and Jauan Jennings. Purdy should lead one of the best offenses in the NFL again this season that could be pushed to throw more if their defense takes a hit.

Brandon Aiyuk's 2024 season unraveled quickly. After a training camp holdout and securing a four-year, $120 million extension, he struggled mightily, averaging just 7.1 fantasy points per game (WR61) with only one game over 50 yards. Things got worse when he tore his ACL and MCL in mid-October, putting his Week 1 status for 2025 in doubt. Given his poor performance after missing time last year, expectations should be tempered early on.

If I were to tell you that there's a wide receiver entering his second season in one of the best offenses in the NFL, that's a former first-round NFL draft pick who flashed in the final weeks of his rookie season, that's dirt cheap in fantasy football drafts...you'd tell me I was insane. Well, I present to you Ricky Pearsall. Pearsall's rookie season was derailed early by camp injuries and then off-the-field circumstances that were out of his control. All of these factors delayed Pearsall flashing his immense talent, but eventually, the cream rose to the top. In the final two weeks of the regular season, Pearsall finished as the WR7 and WR14 in weekly scoring while seeing a 21.7% target share and 30.4% first-read share and producing 2.84 yards per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). Brandon Aiyuk is coming off a torn ACL in 2025, and Deebo Samuel is gone. If Pearsall can establish himself as the 1B in this passing attack behind George Kittle, he'll crush his ADP and help plenty of Fantasy GMs to titles in 2025.

Guerendo assumes the direct handcuff role for the 49ers in 2025 after Jordan Mason and Elijah Mitchell were jettisoned this offseason. Guerenedo earned this role last year when he was asked to assume the starting job. Guerendo had four games last year where he played at least 55% of the snaps, and he averaged 16.7 touches and 101 total yards. In weekly fantasy scoring in those outings, he finished as the RB10, RB2, RB25, and RB11. Guerendo was also an explosive player on a per-touch basis. Among 70 qualifying backs, he ranked sixth in explosive run rate and seventh in missed tackles forced per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). Guerendo is arguably the most valuable handcuff in fantasy football because if Christian McCaffrey were to miss any time, we know what we'd be getting weekly, and that's RB1 production.