Which 49ers' Fantasy Football Wideout Should You be Targeting: Jauan Jennings, Brandon Aiyuk or Ricky Pearsall?

It's time for another fantasy football outlook for 2025. We'll look at the San Francisco 49ers next.

We have looked at the Steelers, Packers, Titans, Panthers, Chiefs, Falcons, Jaguars, Commanders, Texans, Cardinals, Bengals, Lions and Dolphins so far. We will cover other teams in the days and weeks to come, so keep checking back.

Wish a real fantasy expert could break down your team, not just spit out generic advice? Now you can - get a personalized Team Breakdown, tailored for your exact league.

Brock Purdy Fantasy Outlook

Purdy is hoping for a bounceback year, as is most of the Niners' offense.

He got in 15 games last season, throwing for 3,864 yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, which was a far cry from his 2023 season. Purdy rushed for 323 yards and five scores, which added some much-needed value to his name.

Purdy led the Niners in fantasy points, but was QB13 overall. So far, Purdy is QB12 and is going around pick 107.

Even though he's coming off a down season, you can see by his ADP that Purdy is still pretty highly regarded amongst fantasy owners. I think he's capable of being a top-10 fantasy QB, so I'm a fan of drafting Purdy around his ADP.

He's worth taking a gamble on in standard redraft leagues, especially if you didn't land one of the top-end quarterbacks early in your draft. Purdy is a weekly starting option in some deeper setups, and definitely in two-QB setups.

He could become a standard league weekly option in short order, so if he goes undrafted in your league, keep a close eye on him early in the season.

Running Back Fantasy Outlook

Christian McCaffrey is the top back for the Niners. Isaac Guerendo, Jordan James and Patrick Taylor Jr. are some secondary options.

McCaffrey is coming off an injury-riddled season. In four games, he posted 348 total yards and failed to score. At full strength, like he was for most of 2023, CMC can be elite - he had 2,023 total yards and 21 scores over 16 games.

McCaffrey is still a top-end fantasy draft option despite the injury woes last year, and over his career. He was RB4 and is going around pick seven on average. 

I personally think that's too high for CMC. I understand he's elite when he's healthy, but taking him in the first round is a really big gamble, and I'd let someone else take that. Skip him and target a highly-touted receiver instead, and then grab a running back in round two.

Guerendo is likely to be the top back if McCaffrey misses time again this season. He's RB47 and going around pick 135.

Across 16 games in his rookie season, Guerendo had 572 total yards and four scores. He showed some flashes of upside, enough so to be the team's No. 2 back going into this season.

With the Niners hoping to get CMC through the season, I expect Guerendo to carve out an offensive role right from the start of the season. In the right matchups, Guerendo could be a flex option.

Especially because he's backing up a workhorse like McCaffrey, I love the idea of drafting Guerendo late in a standard redraft league. There's not a lot of risk, and it could pay off in a big way for you in the long run.

Jordan James is RB82 and is going around pick 281 on average. He was a fifth-round pick this offseason, and offers some stability in case CMC were to go down.

I think it will be tough for James to carve out an offensive role behind CMC and Guerendo. Others agree, and that's why he's at the ADP he is.

It's fine to take him in some deeper redraft leagues, but don't expect much out of James in 2025. He could become something in the long run, meaning he's a better dynasty/keeper asset.

Wide Receiver Fantasy Outlook

Brandon Aiyuk, Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings are the projected starting wideouts in Chicago. Demarcus Robinson, Jordan Watkins, Jacob Cowing, Russell Gage and Junior Bergen are some additional wideouts on the roster.

San Fran has three wide receivers on the ADP list, and they are all bunched up, meaning nobody knows who will lead the way.

Jennings is WR43 and is going around pick 92, while Pearsall is WR44 and is at pick 95 on average. Aiyuk is WR51 and is going around pick 123.

Jennings played 15 games a season ago, racking up 975 total yards and six touchdowns. It was his best season as a pro. Something to note, Jennings has yet to reach 17 games in a single season, and has missed six games over the past two years combined.

Jennings has a chance to lead the wideout room this season, but I don't prefer him over Aiyuk and Pearsall when everyone is healthy. For that reason, I don't love Jennings near his ADP, and would probably skip him unless he falls into the 100s.

Aiyuk is on the physically unable to perform list and is likely to miss the start of the regular season because of an injury he suffered last season. He played in seven games before succumbing to that injury. Aiyuk had 374 yards and no scores over his seven games. 

He went for over 1,000 yards in his two years before that, and was coming off a stellar 2023 year in which he had 1,342 yards and seven scores.

I don't expect Aiyuk to get near those numbers this season, but he still could push for 1,000 yards if he doesn't miss too much more than a month of play. I think he's the most talented wideout on the team, but it's always risky banking on a player coming off a major injury.

He's a risky pick near his ADP, especially because he's already expected to miss some time. I'd be more inclined to take him near his ADP than I would Jennings.

Pearsall got in 11 games after being the team's No. 31 pick in 2024. He showed some flashes of promise, but still only had 445 yards and three scores by the end of the year.

I'm actually a fan of Pearsall over Jennings, and think Pearsall could also outproduce Aiyuk because he'll miss time. I don't see him emerging as a weekly starter though, and instead see him as more of a flex option throughout the season.

He's worth taking a gamble on near his ADP, although I again prefer him the 100s. If I had to take just one of the three wideouts near their ADP, it'd be Aiyuk.

We'll see who leads the wide receiver room by the end of the season, but I personally think it will be pretty balanced, and might end up frustrating fantasy owners over the course of the season. Really, the best pass catcher is the tight end.

Tight End Fantasy Outlook

George Kittle is the team's most talented pass catcher. He's backed up by Luke Farrell and Brayden Willis.

Kittle was TE3 last season overall, but was the top TE on a per-week basis. He's TE3 and is going around pick 40 on average so far.

What's wild about Kittle being TE3 overall last season is that he only played in 15 games. He had 1,106 yards and eight scores.

Since the year Purdy came into the NFL, all Kittle has done is accumulate 2,891 yards and 25 touchdowns over 46 games. I think Kittle is underrated going into the season, and he offers much more draft value near his ADP, as opposed to where the top-two tight ends (Brock Bowers and Trey McBride) are going.

I'm usually not a huge fan of taking a tight end early, but I love the idea of drafting Kittle near his ADP. He has a pretty good chance to outperform his draft slot, and he offers an every-week starter at a position. I'm all for taking Kittle this season, and I'm expecting a monster season out of him.