Who Should I Start? Mike Evans or Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Thursday, June 4, 1:25 PM

New San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mike Evans has quickly won over his coaches and teammates in the Bay Area during OTAs, according to Matt Barrows of The Athletic. Not only has Evans, a surefire future Hall of Famer, been humble around his new teammates, but his length and route-running abilities have stood out in practices. "I pinch myself every day," tight end George Kittle said. "This is like the first legit veteran wide receiver I've had on my roster since Emmanuel Sanders in 2019, in my opinion. And nothing against the other veteran receivers I've had, but he's a Hall of Famer. I think he takes ball seriously. That kind of sets the tone for the wide receiver room, especially when we have a bunch of young guys in there." Evans' string of 11 straight 1,000-yard seasons ended in 2025 due to a broken clavicle, but he's intent on starting a new streak in 2026 at 32 years old. Joining the Niners gives Evans a clear path back to the 1,000-yard mark and perhaps even double-digit touchdowns, but there's no denying the risk involved with an aging player like Evans, who has a lot of tread on the tires. Fantasy managers would be wise to target him as more of a high-end WR3/low-end WR2 in drafts this fall.