Who Should I Start? Michael Pittman Jr. or Brandon Aiyuk

Wednesday, July 23, 5:52 PM

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (knee) took part in the team's first training camp practice on Wednesday, according to the Indianapolis Star's Joel A. Erickson. It's good to hear that Pittman is practicing on the first day of camp after he dealt with some knee soreness on the last day of OTA practices in the spring. The 27-year-old is the team's unquestioned WR1, but it remains to be seen if it will be Daniel Jones or Anthony Richardson Sr. throwing him passes to open the 2025 season in early September. Pittman took a step back in 2024 with a 69-808-3 line in 16 regular-season games (14 starts), primarily because of the turmoil at the QB position. It also didn't help that Josh Downs took a big step forward. He may never see as many targets as he did in 2022 and 2023, and neither Jones nor Richardson will be great for his fantasy value as more of a WR4/flex.

Tuesday, July 22, 2:37 PM

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch says the team is "encouraged" about wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk's (knee) recovery from the ACL and MCL tears that ended his 2024 season last October. However, Aiyuk is "not anywhere close to having a concrete timeline" to return to practices, according to Matt Barrows of The Athletic. Aiyuk was placed on the active/physically unable to perform list on Friday, which means he can theoretically be activated at any point this offseason. Nevertheless, previous reporting has indicated Aiyuk is unlikely to be ready to go for the start of the regular season. In his absence, San Francisco will rely more heavily on receivers Ricky Pearsall, Jauan Jennings, Demarcus Robinson, and Jacob Cowing. Rookie fourth-round wideout Jordan Watkins could also get more of a look in camp.