Who Should I Start? George Kittle or Dawson Knox

Tuesday, January 20, 12:48 PM

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (Achilles) said on Monday that he expects to return from his torn Achilles "well before November" while also saying he could play close to the 2026 regular-season opener, according to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. Kittle tore his Achilles tendon in the Wild-Card win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Jan. 11 and had successful surgery last week. Kittle's Achilles tear was a best-case scenario because he suffered a "clean tear." "They didn't have to drill into my heel," Kittle said. "And where the repair was, there's more blood flow. And so it takes some time off the recovery time." The 32-year-old only played in 11 regular-season games due to injuries in 2025, although he was the TE3 in half-PPR fantasy points per game (12.1), catching 57 passes for 628 yards and seven TDs. While Kittle is optimistic about his recovery, fantasy managers should expect him to miss potentially half the 2026 season.

Tuesday, January 6, 2:55 PM

Buffalo Bills tight end Dawson Knox caught his fourth touchdown of the season in a Week 18 win over the Jets, which saw most of the team's starters relegated to the sidelines. He now has three touchdowns in his last four games after a two-score performance against the Patriots in Week 15. Heading into the postseason, he should be viewed as nothing more than a touchdown-dependent dart throw for fantasy playoff leagues. Outside of a Week 14 win over the Bengals that saw him explode for 93 yards, Knox hasn't topped 37 receiving yards in any other game. With Dalton Kincaid able to fight through a knee injury to suit up for the regular season finale, Knox's role also becomes more difficult to predict with both tight ends presumably set to play in a road game against Jacksonville.