{"id":100579,"date":"2020-12-26T07:44:24","date_gmt":"2020-12-26T12:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=100579"},"modified":"2020-12-26T07:44:24","modified_gmt":"2020-12-26T12:44:24","slug":"george-kittle-fantasy-football-outlook-week-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2020\/12\/26\/george-kittle-fantasy-football-outlook-week-16\/","title":{"rendered":"George Kittle Fantasy Football Outlook (Week 16)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The tight end landscape is absolutely desolate, but fantasy football fans are about to get one of the best in the game back on the field. The San Francisco 49ers<\/a> activated tight end George Kittle<\/a><\/strong>, and the superstar is expected to play in Week 16. Should you trust Kittle, or does he carry too much risk coming off of injury?<\/p>\n

Fantasy Football Week 16 Stream Team<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

George Kittle Week 16 Fantasy Football Outlook<\/h2>\n

Normally, starting George Kittle is a no-brainer. At his best, Travis Kelce<\/a><\/strong> and MAYBE<\/em> Darren Waller<\/a><\/strong> are the only players that can hold a candle to Kittle’s dominance. However, George Kittle is not at his best. The former fifth-round pick is coming off of a serious injury, and won\u2019t be ready for a full workload.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t take my word for it, head coach Kyle Shanahan<\/strong> said the same thing<\/a>. Speaking to reporters on Christmas Eve, the 49ers head coach said that Kittle will be on \u201csomething of a snap count\u201d. While he didn\u2019t go into any further details, it\u2019s safe to assume Kittle won\u2019t have his typical 90% snap share.<\/p>\n

Kittle\u2019s limited workload puts a cap on his ceiling, but that doesn\u2019t mean he won\u2019t have any fantasy football relevance. The 49ers are out of playoff contention, and Kittle wouldn\u2019t be coming back if San Francisco believed he was at any risk of re-injury. Kittle will see the field, and he\u2019s probably healthy enough to look something like his former self when on the field. There is value in a player like that, but how much value? Let\u2019s take a dive into Kittle\u2019s situation to see what we can expect.<\/p>\n

George Kittle\u2019s Situation<\/h3>\n

The 2020 San Francisco 49ers are one of the most injured teams in the league, and that trend has continued into Week 16. Nick Mullens<\/a><\/strong> suffered an elbow injury in Week 15, and Jimmy Garoppolo<\/a><\/strong> isn\u2019t ready to return to the field. This leaves C.J. Beathard<\/a><\/strong> atop the depth chart as the person responsible for feeding Kittle.<\/p>\n

Beathard played in four games this year, but only came in for relief. Because of this, it doesn\u2019t make sense to look at any of Kittle\u2019s 2020 splits with and without Beathard. In order to truly judge Beathard and Kittle’s success together, we’ll need to go back to 2018. Beathard started in Weeks 4-8 of the 2018 season, and Kittle averaged 14.7 PPR fantasy points per game in those five games (five receptions, 78.7 yards, 0.3 touchdowns). This is obviously fantastic production for the position, so we know Beathard is capable of getting the ball to Kittle.<\/p>\n

Looking at San Francisco\u2019s supporting cast, it\u2019s safe to assume that Kittle will be targeted when on the field. Deebo Samuel<\/a><\/strong> will miss Week 16, leaving Brandon Aiyuk<\/a><\/strong> as the only other reliable option in the passing game. Aiyuk is having a fantastic season<\/a>, but he\u2019s not going to steal 100% of the targets.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, George Kittle should be a solid fantasy football option this week. C.J. Beathard has proven capable of getting him the ball in the past, and there isn\u2019t any real competition for targets outside of Brandon Aiyuk. While rust and a limited workload drags down Kittle\u2019s overall projection, his talent combined with the absolute lack of worthwhile fantasy options puts him safely in the TE5-8 range.<\/p>\n

Fantasy Football Week 16 Stream Team<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Main photo:
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>