2026 Team Outlook: San Francisco 49ers

3. RB Christian McCaffrey, SF - Stud (low risk)

McCaffrey topped all running backs in PPR scoring in both 2018 (387.0) and 2019 (471.2). His 2019 campaign was historic (403 touches, 1,387 rushing yards, and 1,005 receiving yards), making him just the third player in NFL history to clear 1,000 yards in both categories in the same season. He surpassed 100 rushing yards in six of his first nine games before Carolina leaned on him as a receiver down the stretch (68/609/1), including three multi-catch explosions (11/121, 11/82, and 15/119). He reached double digits in receptions five times that year. Injuries wiped out 13 weeks of his 2020 season (ankle, thigh, and shoulder issues each taking their turn). McCaffrey averaged 28.7 touches and 30.13 fantasy points per game when healthy. He managed to stay on the field for seven starts in 2021, producing 785 combined yards, two touchdowns, and 37 catches, but hamstring and ankle problems limited his workload (19.4 touches per game) and dragged his scoring down to 18.21 FPPG. After losing 24 games across those two injury-plagued years, McCaffrey played a full season in 2022 and delivered 1,880 combined yards, 13 touchdowns, and 85 catches. Across his 13 full games, he averaged 19.5 touches and 22.34 FPPG, with his two biggest fantasy outputs arriving in Week 8 (40.60) and Week 17 (31.30). His first complete season with the 49ers in 2023 was the second-best of his career (2,023 combined yards, 21 touchdowns, 67 catches, and 339 touches). McCaffrey maintained a floor of 18 touches in 15 of 16 starts (21.2 per game), rushed for over 100 yards eight times, and topped 100 combined yards in four additional outings. He finished 102.80 fantasy points ahead of the second-best running back in PPR

formats, trailing only CeeDee Lamb (405.20) in overall scoring. Both of his signature games came against Arizona — Week 4 (29/106/3 rushing, 7/71/1 receiving) and Week 15 (18/115/1 rushing, 5/72/2 receiving). The fantasy community got played in 2024. McCaffrey was a consensus top-five pick heading into the summer before a calf issue quietly became an Achilles problem, landing him on injured reserve to start the year. He returned after eight games but never found his footing (348 combined yards, no touchdowns, and 15 catches across four appearances on 65 touches) before a knee injury shut him down for good. For fantasy drafters fading McCaffrey in 2025 due to getting beaten by him the previous year, they missed a great running back season. He gained 2,126 combined yards with 17 touchdowns and 102 catches on 413 touches, resulting in 416.60 PPR fantasy points. Over his first seven starts, the 49ers’ star back produced elite PPR fantasy points in each matchup (23.20, 22.70, 24.00, 26.10, 27.90, 24.10, and 39.10). He had a floor of 17.00 fantasy points in eight other matchups, with six resulting in impact value (34.30, 35.10, 27.20, 32.60, 28.10, and 29.40). Fantasy Outlook: Despite his success last year, McCaffrey has been a losing fantasy investment five times over the past seven seasons due to injuries. Running backs with high-volume opportunities tend to have a step back in production the following year. This draft season, McCaffrey is the third-ranked running back in the National Fantasy Football Championship (ADP of 7). Tough player to fade, so I would get a few shares for the game managers that draft multiple fantasy teams. When on the field, he checks the three boxes (scoring, consistency, and impact value) that are required to win championships. With 350 touches, 1,800 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 80 catches should be a reasonable outcome.

14. QB Brock Purdy, SF - Quality Backup

Purdy was a four-year starter at Iowa, throwing for 12,170 yards with 81 touchdowns and 33 interceptions across 48 games. He also contributed on the ground with 365 carries for 1,177 yards and 19 scores. San Francisco took a chance on him in the seventh round in 2022. Quarterback injuries thrust him into the starting role in Week 13 of his rookie season, and Purdy made the most of it — going 8-0, with 1,854 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. He completed 66.8% of his passes and averaged an impressive 8.4 yards per attempt. His playoff debut was his signature moment, throwing for 348 yards and four scores. The 49ers averaged 27.5 pass attempts per game with him under center. His storybook run ended in the postseason when he suffered an ACL injury to his right elbow, requiring surgery in February. Purdy was back under center for Week 1 in 2023 and went 14-5 across 19 starts, including a Super Bowl appearance. Over 16 regular-season starts, he averaged 27.8 attempts per game and piled up 4,424 combined yards with 33 touchdowns, finishing seventh in quarterback scoring (351.50) in four-point passing touchdown formats before sitting out Week 18 for rest. His sharpest outings came in Week 11 (347/3) and Week 13 (323/4), and Purdy threw four touchdowns in two other games (252/4 and 242/4). He averaged 9.6 yards per attempt and

generated 72 completions of at least 20 yards, with 14 reaching the 40- yard mark. Injuries to Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk, combined with a down year from Deebo Samuel, created headwinds in 2024. His completion rate dipped to 65.9%, but Purdy kept finding chunk plays (8.5 yards per attempt, 12 completions of 40-plus yards). He also set new career bests on the ground (65/323/5), adding a dimension to his fantasy profile that hadn't been there before. A right shoulder injury cost him Week 12, and an elbow issue kept him out of the finale. His pass volume climbed 8.3% to 30.3 attempts per game, while still ranking below the league average. Purdy was on pace for 4,379 passing yards and 23 touchdowns, the latter falling short of what his talent suggested. Five 300-yard games dotted the schedule (319/1, 353/2, 325/2, 313/2, and 377/3), and he topped 20 fantasy points in 60% of his starts, with a season-best 36.05 arriving in Week 17. One week into 2025 (294 combined yards with two touchdowns), Purdy suffered toe and shoulder injuries, leading to eight missed games over the following nine weeks. Over his final nine games, he averaged 23.02 fantasy points per game in four-point passing touchdown formats. His best value came from Week 15 to Week 17 (339/3, 306/5, and 331/5), when league and overall championships were on the line. His completion rate (69.4%) graded well for the year due to Christian McCaffrey's (102/924/7 on 128 targets) command chain moving catches. No other receiver caught more than 57 passes. Fantasy Outlook: The 49ers revamped their wide receiving corps in the offseason, but their star tight end is coming off an Achilles injury. Purdy ranks 12th at quarterback in late June in the high-stakes fantasy market. The 49ers averaged 33.7 passes per game last year. With a healthy year, Purdy has the talent and opportunity to gain 4,500 combined yards

with 30+ touchdowns, making him a value in 2026. Healthy season by Christian McCaffrey is a must.

14. TE George Kittle, SF - Sleeper (undervalued)

Kittle opened 2022 on the sideline with a groin injury that cost him two games. Over his first 11 starts, he was solid but unspectacular (42 catches for 500 yards and four touchdowns on 59 targets). The switch to Brock Purdy at quarterback unlocked him down the stretch, with four strong closing weeks (4/93/2, 6/120/2, 4/23/1, and 4/29/2). Three other games stood out earlier in the year — Week 6 (8/83), Week 7 (6/98/1), and Week 11 (4/84/2). San Francisco's offensive approach in 2023 turned Kittle into a boom- or-bust proposition. His seven productive outings were special (7/90, 3/67/3, 9/149, 3/116/1, 8/89/1, 7/126, and 4/81/1), but he failed to crack 8.00 fantasy points in nine starts, including the postseason, and drew four targets or fewer in 11 of his 19 appearances. His inconsistency was real, yet Kittle still managed to finish fifth among tight ends in PPR scoring (203.20). Despite missing two more games (this time with foot and hamstring problems), Kittle cleared 1,000 receiving yards for the fourth time in his career in 2024. His touchdown production was front-loaded, scoring all eight of his touchdowns between Week 2 and Week 12 across eight games, with five performances topping 20.00 fantasy points over that span (7/76/1, 8/64/1, 5/58/2, 6/128/1, and 6/82/1). He then closed the year on a tear, surpassing 100 receiving yards in three of his final five games (6/151, 8/106, and 8/112). Kittle ranked seventh at the tight end position in targets but climbed to third in fantasy scoring (236.60). Over the first seven games in 2025, Kittle missed five starts with a hamstring injury, catching only four passes for 25 yards and one touchdown in his two matchups. His production aligned with his career path across his next eight games (48/574/6 on 56 targets – 17.64 PPR fantasy points). Unfortunately, a late-season ankle issue turned into an Achilles injury that required surgery in January.

He's missed 22 weeks over the last six years. Over his past 109 games, Kittle averaged 5.1 catches for 69 yards and 0.46 touchdowns per game (14.76 FPPG). Fantasy Outlook: The 49ers expected Kittle to be ready for Week 1. He ranks 10th at tight end in late June, with 10th-round ADP in the National Fantasy Football Championship. His resume of success is long, but playing a full year hasn’t happened since 2018. With each week that passes this summer with positive news about Kittle’s return date, he will move up draft boards. I’ll set his bar at 60 catches for 700 yards and seven touchdowns, which prices in some missed games.

16. PK Eddy Pineiro, SF - Bye Week Fill-in

Pineiro comes off his best year in the NFL. He made 28 of his 29 field attempts (96.6%), with his only miss coming from 50 yards or more (6- for-7). Over the past four seasons, Pineiro sent 90.8% of his 119 field goal tries through the uprights. On the downside, his extra point success rate (91.2%) was elite. He’s made 17 of his 21 chances from long range. Fantasy Outlook: San Francisco scored 49 touchdowns last year while creating 36 field goal chances. The 49ers will score points, giving their kicker matchup value in 2026. Pineiro ranks sixth at kicker in the early draft season.

26. WR Mike Evans, SF - Solid/Safe Pick

With Tom Brady under center, Tampa funneled 350 targets Evans's way over three seasons. He set new personal bests in touchdown catches in back-to-back years (13 in 2020 and 14 in 2021), before falling back to six scores in 2022. Interestingly, his target rate was actually higher across 62 games from 2015 to 2018 (9.6 per week) than it was over his first 47 starts with the Buccaneers (7.4 per week). His 2022 season was a study in feast or famine: two explosive outings (8/103/2 and 10/207/3) bookended an 11-week scoring drought, with only two other games worth mentioning (5/71/1 in Week 1 and 6/123 in Week 8). Year WRC SPT WYD YD% YC TGT TD 2025 160 0.402 2151 0.50 13.44 251 10 2024 199 0.570 2608 0.59 13.11 312 12 2023 177 0.527 2785 0.61 15.73 265 18

The arrival of Baker Mayfield brought a steadier version of Evans in 2023. He held a fantasy floor of at least 10.00 points in 13 of 17 regular- season games, with his hottest stretch running from Week 10 through Week 13 (6/143/1, 5/43/1, 6/70/2, and 7/162/1). Evans closed the year with his second-highest receiving yard total (1,255) and rediscovered his scoring touch with 13 touchdowns. His 136 targets were his most since 2018, and Mayfield trusted him down the field — Evans averaged 15.9 yards per catch in response. Three more standout games added to the resume (Week 2 – 6/171/1, Week 16 – 7/86/2, and Week 20 – 8/147/1), and he finished seventh among wide receivers in PPR scoring (282.50). 2024 opened with Evans producing in spurts (26 catches on 45 targets for 335 yards and six touchdowns over the first seven games), with three bright spots (5/61/2, 8/94/1, and 5/62/2) mixed in. A hamstring injury then pulled him off the field for three games at the midpoint of the year. Mayfield carried him to the 1,000-yard mark over the final seven weeks (48/669/5 on 65 targets), with Evans delivering four games of eight-plus catches (8/118/1, 9/159/2, 8/97/2, and 9/89) and a strong playoff showing (7/92/1). He wrapped up the season 14th in PPR wide receiver scoring at 240.40 points. Last year, Evans suited up for only eight games (30/368/3 on 62 targets) due to a hamstring injury and a broken collarbone. As a result, his 11- year streak with over 1,000 yards receiving came to an end. He played the best from Week 16 to Week 18 (6/132, 5/31/1, and 3/31/1) while averaging 9.3 targets over this span. Evans moved to 21st all-time in receiving yards (13,052) and 10th in receiving touchdowns (108). Fantasy Outlook: The 49ers signed Evans to a three-year contract in March with only $16.3 million in guaranteed money. His style of play should fit well with Brock Purdy, leading to double-digit touchdowns and

another 1,000+ receiving yards. At age 33, he may only have one more top-tier season in him if Evans can stay healthy. He ranks 25th at wide receiver in the National Fantasy Football Championship in late June with a fourth-round ADP.