George

Kittle

It was a game to be forgotten by the 49ers in what became swirling blizzard-like conditions due to lake effect in Buffalo. Furthering the dismay for the 49ers was the departure of running back Christian McCaffrey five minutes into the second quarter, who appears likely to miss the remainder of the season with a PCL injury. That could bring back the consistency to Kittle’s game the rest of the way, with his next opportunity to return a usable fantasy score coming in Week 14 against the Bears.

Kittle functioned as the one-man show, winning 2-of-2 contested catches while averaging 5.3 yards after the catch. He accounted for four of the 49ers’ eight first-down gains through the air. It was a Herculean effort. Kittle is a high-end TE1 against the Bills in Week 13.

Williams has failed to practice since the 49ers’ Week 9 bye and was clearly favoring one leg during Week 11’s pre-game warmups. Reports about his Week 12 availability varied as the week progressed but the 49ers ultimately decided to sit the talented veteran blocker. Backup OT Jaylon Moore will start in Williams’ stead. The 49ers also declared QB Brock Purdy, DE Nick Bosa, CB Charvarius Ward, WR Jacob Cowing, DT Kevin Givens and DT Khalil Davis inactive. George Kittle will play this week after sitting out Week 11 with a hamstring injury.

Kittle is back after missing one game due to the hamstring issue, though he also missed a game earlier in the year because of a hamstring injury. The bigger news on San Francisco’s injury report is Brocky Purdy’s upcoming absence. The 49ers signal-caller is out with a shoulder injury. Sans Purdy, it’s hard to trust any San Francisco pass-catcher, even with Kyle Shanahan’s record of success with backup quarterbacks. The dismal state of tight ends means fantasy managers have to start Kittle anyway, though the floor is all but gone versus Green Bay.

Kyle Shanahan told reporters Purdy was dealing with soreness in his throwing shoulder earlier this week. He underwent an MRI and GM John Lynch gave reporters a mixed message. He said the team “feels good about where it is” after the MRI but the situation remained “tenuous.” The fact that Purdy was unable to practice in any capacity on Friday and didn’t even get a token questionable tag feels more than ominous for his rest-of-season outlook. For now, Brandon Allen will draw the start in his place. Purdy’s absence is disastrous for all of the pass-catchers this week, though it’s hard to suggest benching any of the big names.

Kittle still appears on pace to return after missing only one game. The bigger question is becoming the health of his quarterback after Brock Purdy remained highly limited with a shoulder issue on Thursday. Kittle would fall to more of the TE7-8 range were Purdy to be sidelined against the Seahawks.

Kittle missed Week 11 with the hamstring issue despite closing the week with two limited practices before being listed as questionable. A limited practice to open the week is a step in the right direction. Head coach Kyle Shanahan also told reporters that he was close to playing on Sunday. Our bet is on Kittle returning for Week 12 and Kittle evidently agrees, telling reporters “I will be playing on Sunday.” Fantasy managers will want to keep tabs on this situation as the week progresses but things are headed in the right direction. The 49ers don’t have a tight end of note for fantasy purposes when Kittle is sidelined, so emergency Kittle replacements will need to come from other squads.

Kittle was officially questionable last week with the hamstring injury, and was supposedly going to test it in pre-game workouts but was declared inactive without even getting on the field before the game. This is good news, but limited practices won’t exactly bring us any closer to a conviction that Kittle will play in Week 12.

Kittle did not participate in pre-game warmups, leading us to conclude he was not close to playing this week. Backup TE Eric Saubert is reportedly ill and should not be considered as a streaming option, though he is active today. LT Trent Williams (ankle) went through an extensive pre-game workout and was seen somewhat favoring one leg but the training staff ultimately determined Williams is healthy enough to play. DE Nick Bosa (hip) is active. The 49ers also declared CB Charvarius Ward, DT Kevin Givens, WR Ronnie Bell, OL Ben Bartch and DT Khalil Davis.

Kittle got in a pair of limited practices before being listed as questionable for Week 11 on Friday. Per Schefter, the team is still going to have Kittle test out the hamstring issue in pre-game warmups before ruling him out, but fantasy managers should not count on having the TE1 overall this week. Schefter noted that this is not believed to be a long-term issue for Kittle. He previously missed Week 3 with a hamstring injury. Eric Saubert drew the start but only saw two targets. He caught both for 41 yards. Saubert is barely a TE2 for Week 11.