Fantasy football: 5 must-have 49ers for your 2021 draft
By Peter Panacy
49ers Fantasy Football Option No. 4: Wide Receiver Brandon Aiyuk
Some may think third-year pro Deebo Samuel should be fantasy owners’ No. 1 target for 49ers wide receivers, and it would be hard to argue.
But Samuel carries that unfortunate injury reputation that held him out for all but seven games last year, and there’s a good chance Samuel winds up being sidelined for at least a small portion of the 2021 season, leaving you scrambling for backups and other options to start.
Related Story: Deebo Samul injury history, outlook for 2021
So it shouldn’t be a surprise Samuel’s Niners counterpart, Brandon Aiyuk, is actually San Francisco’s top-drafted fantasy football wide receiver with an ADP of 5.07 compared to Samuel’s 8.03.
Aiyuk, who recorded 748 receiving yards on 60 receptions last year over just 12 games and with three different quarterbacks trying to get him the ball spells production. Plenty of hype, too, heading into his sophomore year.
Granted, Aiyuk’s targets will diminish with a healthy Samuel and George Kittle back in the fray. Yet there’s a strong chance opposing defenses will focus more on those two names, leaving Aiyuk with plenty of favorable one-on-one matchups.
Even if you have to use an earlier draft pick on him, focus your attention on Aiyuk instead of Samuel.