Who Should I Start? Brandon Aiyuk or Luther Burden III

Thursday, August 7, 12:05 PM

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch said that he "doesn't think" wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) will be cleared for Week 1, although there's still no official timetable set for his return after he tore both his ACL and MCL last year. Aiyuk has been on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list since the start of training camp, and if he remains there for the start of the regular season, he'll be forced to miss at least the first four weeks of the season. The 27-year-old had surgery on his right knee in mid-November of last year and has yet to practice at all. With Aiyuk potentially missing at least the first four weeks of 2025, he's dropped to No. 57 in RotoBaller's receiver rankings. The former first-rounder signed a big extension with San Fran before last season and then had only 25 catches for 374 yards and no touchdowns in seven games before his season-ending injury.

Sunday, August 10, 5:10 PM

Chicago Bears rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III started his NFL career by catching two of three passes for 29 yards in Sunday's 24-24 tie against the Dolphins. Burden caught two passes for significant gains: a 16-yard reception on 3rd and 15, and a 13-yard gain that put kicker Cairo Santos in field-goal range. In crucial moments, quarterback Tyson Bagent looked to the rookie, and he delivered. Burden is currently behind D.J. Moore, Rome Odunze, Olamide Zaccheaus, and Devin Duvernay on the Bears' unofficial depth chart, but he showed promise in his first game action. Expect more from Burden in the next preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.