Who Should I Start? George Kittle or Michael Mayer

Sunday, September 27, 8:18 PM

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is now the WR1 in the Bay Area after more injuries to the team's wide receiving corps in Sunday's 36-30 win over the division-rival Arizona Cardinals. With veteran wideout Mike Evans (ribs, chest) going down with a painful injury in Week 3, the 32-year-old Kittle took over through the air, leading the team with six receptions, seven targets, 82 yards, and two touchdowns to help the team stay undefeated in 2026. The Niners already have Ricky Pearsall (knee), rookie De'Zhaun Stribling (ankle), Christian Kirk (calf), and Demarcus Robinson (ankle) on Injured Reserve, and Evans could be in line to miss time going forward as well. That would really thin out the team's receiving depth, helping to give Kittle a pretty massive target share going into a Week 4 contest at home against the Denver Broncos. Kittle, a seven-time Pro Bowler, was eased into the Week 1 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Rams in his first game back from an Achilles tear suffered in the postseason in January. He caught four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown in the Week 2 win over the Miami Dolphins. Kittle is a must-start, high-end TE1 with San Francisco's receiving weapons dwindling.