Who Should I Start? Brandon Aiyuk or Calvin Austin III

Tuesday, August 26, 5:06 PM

The San Francisco 49ers officially placed wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list to begin the 2025 season, which means he will miss at least the first four contests. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has already said that Aiyuk might be targeting a return around Week 6 on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The 27-year-old suffered a torn ACL and MCL in Week 7 of last season, which is why he's not ready for the start of 2025. The former first-round wideout had been a major disappointment in fantasy before his season-ending knee injury, too, as he caught just 25 of 47 targets for 374 yards and didn't find the end zone once in seven games. It's understandable for fantasy managers to want to avoid him altogether this year, although he's still worth drafting in leagues with IR spots. With Aiyuk sidelined, Jauan Jennings (calf) and Ricky Pearsall should serve as the top wideouts in San Fran.

Monday, September 15, 11:59 AM

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Calvin Austin III was not as productive this past Sunday as he was in Week 1's win over the Jets. However, he was Pittsburgh's leading snap-getter amongst the team's wideouts. Austin III reeled in just 1-of-4 targets for 22 yards in their 31-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, but participated on one more snap than running mate DKMetcalf. Metcalf still paced the team in targets as he did the week prior, but Pittsburgh is throwing it a ton, so there's enough to go around for at least one more pass-catcher. Austin III remains a boom-bust option out wide for now, although he's more intriguing in 2025 than in seasons past. If quarterback Aaron Rodgers can exhibit some consistency, he'll be more useful for fantasy than not.