Who Should I Start? George Kittle or Durham Smythe

Monday, October 21, 7:24 PM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said that tight end George Kittle (foot) is day-to-day due to a foot sprain that he picked up in the Week 7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Kittle broke a streak of four straight games with a touchdown but still had six receptions for a season-high 92 yards on Sunday. Receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) is out for the year with a torn right ACL and MCL, while receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. (illness) is currently in the hospital with pneumonia. It means that the 31-year-old Kittle could be quarterback Brock Purdy's favorite target once again if he's able to play in Week 8 on Sunday night in a great matchup against a banged-up Dallas Cowboys defense. Fantasy managers will want to keep an eye on Kittle's practice status this week, but if he's able to play on Sunday in primetime, he'll be a must-start, high-end TE1.

Tuesday, March 12, 1:14 PM

The Miami Dolphins restructured the contracts of tight end Durham Smythe, fullback Alec Ingold and defensive tackle Zach Sieler on Monday. Coupled with the conversion on cornerback Jalen Ramsey, the Dolphins were able to clear $28.78 million to get under the 2024 salary cap. The 28-year-old Smythe is a blocking first tight end who also served as the team's primary pass-catching tight end in 2023, finishing the year with 35 receptions on 43 targets for 366 yards and no touchdowns. Tight ends haven't been a big part of head coach Mike McDaniels' offense, and there's no reason to expect that to change entering the 2024 season. Smythe should be avoided in most fantasy drafts this fall after the Dolphins added Jonnu Smith to the TE room this offseason.