49ers Fantasy Football Outlook for Week 16 with Isaac Guerendo Likely Out | Patrick Taylor, Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel Sr., Brandon Aiyuk and More
Analyzing the 49ers' top fantasy players going into week 16.
The San Francisco 49ers playoff hopes are on life support, and they seem to be losing players to injuries every couple days.
It’s being reported that Isaac Guerendo, who was starting after the team lost Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason, will miss week 16 against the Dolphins.
The Niners’ offense hasn’t been that good of late, and factoring in another running back being out, I thought it’d be beneficial to look at fantasy outlooks for the team’s top offensive players.
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Week 16 Matchups
The clash against the Dolphins is a pretty tough one across the board for the Niners.
Miami has done a superb job of slowing fantasy quarterbacks this season. The Dolphins are pretty average when it comes to slowing fantasy running backs.
Wide receivers have a tough time usually against the Dolphins. Tight ends have an average matchup.
Quarterback Fantasy Outlook
Quarterback Brock Purdy is projected for 17 fantasy points this week.
Purdy had just four fantasy points last week, and he had only two in week 13. In between, he went for 22 fantasy points. His inconsistent showings have turned him from a good weekly starting fantasy option to just a streaming option.
In the tough matchup, and seeing some of his fantasy struggles of late, I would try to stay away from Purdy in a standard league. The deeper the league gets, the better a starting option Purdy becomes.
Running Back Fantasy Outlook
Guerendo is not listed as out yet, so he’s still projected for 15 PPR fantasy points.
He scored 27 fantasy points in week 14 and then 12 last week. In the pretty average matchup, Guerendo was a player I would have been likely to start. Even if he does suit up this week, the injury concerns would hold me back from playing him in a standard league.
Patrick Taylor is the top backup, and he’s projected for three PPR points at this point.
Taylor scored nine fantasy points in week 14 after Guerendo got banged up. He only played three snaps and didn’t get a touch in the team’s week 15 game though.
Taylor appears to be the next man up, and in the OK matchup, he’s a standard league starting option. I’d need to hear a coach or see a report that he was going to function as the lead back before placing him in my starting lineup though.
There’s a chance the Niners just split the backfield between Taylor, Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Israel Abanikanda if Guerendo was to miss the game. There’s a receiver who could also take on some rushing attempts, which makes the fantasy outlooks for Taylor, Vaughn and Abanikanda drop even more.
Wide Receiver Fantasy Outlook
Jauan Jennings is the Niners’ top fantasy wide receiver right now. Deebo Samuel Sr. is the wideout who could factor in a bit in the running game. Ricky Pearsall is also an option to step up.
Jennings is projected for 13 PPR fantasy points.
He only scored five points last week, but was at 28 points in week 14. Jennings scored nine fantasy points in weeks 13 and 12.
Samuel is projected for 11 PPR points.
He’s struggled most of this season, and hasn’t gone over six fantasy points in five straight contests. The Niners tried to get him more involved in week 15, and he only had five fantasy points - along with a massive drop.
Pearsall is set for just five fantasy points.
He had a 16-yard catch in week 15, and a five-yard catch in week 14. He didn’t have a catch in the previous three games.
Jennings is the San Fran receiver who should draw the most fantasy starts this coming week. In a tougher matchup and seeing how the team’s offense has looked of late, I’d just put him on the start/sit line though. I’m sure he’ll appear in some start/sit articles of ours in the coming days, so be sure to check back for those.
I would start Jennings in a deeper league, and those are the only leagues I would consider Samuel in. He just hasn’t done enough of late to trust with a start in such a crucial fantasy week. I think he has enough upside to try in a deeper league, but I wouldn’t be all too confident in starting him.
Pearsall is another deep-league option, but one I’d try to avoid seeing his involvement over the past several weeks. He has some upside, but he’s far too risky to play in a crucial fantasy week.
Tight End Fantasy Outlook
George Kittle is the team’s top pass-catching option. He’s been one of the top fantasy tight ends all season.
He’s projected for 15 PPR fantasy points this week, trailing only Brock Bowers (16).
Kittle scored 10 fantasy points last week and had 21 the week before that. His lone poor performance this season came in week 13, when he scored two points.
Kittle is the only San Fran offensive player I’d truly trust with a starting spot in a standard league, and that might not have been the case if he wasn’t at a weak fantasy TE position. In a decent matchup, I expect Kittle to produce, and I’d be starting him in all league types.
Be sure to run your Niners’ players through the start/sit tool to see if you are making the right decisions before week 16 kicks off!