Who Should I Start? Brandon Aiyuk or Rome Odunze

Thursday, December 18, 4:18 PM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said that wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) has been "extremely distant" from the team since suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 7 of the 2024 season, per Matt Barrows of The Athletic. The 27-year-old has not played a game since that point. The 49ers voided guarantees in his contract for 2026 and placed him on the reserve/left squad list on Saturday, officially ending his 2025 season. All signs seem to indicate that Aiyuk and the 49ers are likely to go their separate ways this offseason. In his last fully healthy season in 2023, Aiyuk recorded 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns on 105 targets. He has a chance to get back to his superstar heights if he can get fully healthy and find the right team. However, his health and the way his current situation in San Francisco has unfolded may bring about question marks for dynasty league fantasy managers.

Wednesday, January 7, 4:47 PM

Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze (foot) said he plans to play in Saturday's Wild-Card matchup against the division-rival Green Bay Packers, according to Adam Hoge of AllCHGOcom. Odunze has missed the past five games due to a stress fracture in his foot, but he appears set to make his return in the playoffs. The second-year wideout has cooled off considerably since the Bears' Week 5 bye, recording three or fewer catches in six of eight games, with only one touchdown after finding the end zone five times in the first four weeks of the season. It's tough to trust Odunze as anything more than a low-end flex option for fantasy in the playoffs, with Chicago's pair of rookies in Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III emerging as go-to targets down the stretch.