Who Should I Start? Jauan Jennings or Bucky Irving

Wednesday, June 11, 12:24 PM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said that wide receiver Jauan Jennings (calf), who isn't practicing during mandatory minicamp this week, is expected to be ready for the start of training camp in late July. The Niners are playing it safe with Jennings and Ricky Pearsall (hamstring) with Brandon Aiyuk (knee) not expected to be ready until around midseason. Barring a setback with his calf in training camp, Jennings could be the team's WR1 to open the 2025 season with Aiyuk sidelined. The 27-year-old had a career year in 2024 with 77 receptions on 113 targets for 975 yards and six touchdowns in 15 games (10 starts) with Aiyuk suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 7. Jennings should at least have a bigger role again early on in 2025, but he could be the No. 3 target for quarterback Brock Purdy behind tight end George Kittle and second-year wideout Ricky Pearsall (hamstring).

Wednesday, June 18, 7:41 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving noted last week that he aims to improve heading into his second season. "But yeah, just always going back and looking at the film and looking at things that you can get better at and improve in, and also not getting satisfied and stuck in last year," said Irving. "Nobody cares about what you did last year. It's, 'What can you do for me now?'" The Oregon alum burst onto the scene last season with a PPR RB13 finish despite toting the rock just 207 times. He displayed an elite ability to break tackles and was a catalyst for Tampa Bay with the ball in his hands. With the Buccaneers returning all of their offensive line starters from 2024, Irving could be in for a massive year with a focus on aiming higher in his second season. He's one of the more exciting picks in the first two rounds of fantasy drafts.