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Will George Kittle play in Week 2 for fantasy football? Is George Kittle injured or hurt heading into Week 2 of 2025? Read the latest George Kittle injury report.
Despite being a little-known prospect coming out of Iowa, George Kittle quickly established himself as one of the world's best tight ends and helped the 49ers make two Super Bowl appearances in 2019 and 2023, as he himself was named a first-team All-Pro in both years.
Kittle led an injury-plagued Niners team in receiving in 2024 and was expected to do the same thing again in the 2025 season. However, Kittle suffered an injury in Week 1 against the Seahawks, which has fantasy managers worried about his status.
So, what's Kittle's status for Week 2, and will he play? Read the latest George Kittle injury news and fantasy outlook below.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 2025 fantasy football rankings
- Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
- Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
- Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
George Kittle Fantasy Football Injury Update
On the 49ers' first drive of the game, Brock Purdy threw to Kittle three times, which included a five-yard touchdown catch. Interestingly, this was the first-ever Week 1 touchdown of Kittle's career. Kittle went on to make one more catch in the second quarter before exiting the game.
Purdy finds Kittle for the 49ers TD! 💪
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/BMdksbqD9M
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 7, 2025
Kittle was officially ruled out at halftime, but the Niners still managed to win without him. Kittle finished this week as the standard format TE6, and could have easily finished as the TE1 had he stayed healthy.
After the game, it was revealed that Kittle had suffered a hamstring injury and he would miss some time. Later, San Francisco's head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters that he expected Kittle to "miss a few weeks".
Is George Kittle Playing in Week 2?
On Tuesday, the 49ers officially announced that Kittle had been placed on the Injured Reserve list, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. This will rule him out for at least the next four weeks.
49ers placing TE George Kittle (hamstring) on IR. (via @tompelissero) pic.twitter.com/hIAhkjTSIk
— NFL (@NFL) September 9, 2025
The 49ers will play against the Saints, Cardinals, Jaguars, and Rams during Kittle's absence, which will be a huge missed opportunity for his fantasy owners.
The Jaguars and Rams were both in the top 10 of most PPR points allowed to TEs last year, while the Saints are regarded as one of the worst teams in all of football.
Without Kittle, the Niners will have to rely on Jake Tonges and Luke Farrell. Farrell is more experienced and has 322 NFL receiving yards to his name, while Tonges impressed against Seattle and caught the game-winning touchdown.
George Kittle Fantasy Football Outlook for Week 2
The 49ers' injury crisis just won't end. In addition to Kittle's injury, Jauan Jennings suffered a shoulder injury, which isn't considered to be serious. However, QB Brock Purdy is banged up, and his status against the Saints is in doubt.
Brock Purdy has a left shoulder and toe injury that make him uncertain for Sunday’s game in New Orleans. Kyle Shanahan said the team will see how the practice week goes.
If Purdy cannot play, 49ers backup QB Mac Jones would be in line to start. pic.twitter.com/7ocnuD0UYI
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 8, 2025
If Purdy misses time, the Niners will have to find ways to win games with Mac Jones, Ricky Pearsall, and their only remaining superstar, the notoriously injury-prone Christian McCaffrey. If the team falls into a hole early, don't be surprised if Kittle gets rested if this season turns into a "lost" campaign.
However, if they stay afloat, Kittle could still return to fantasy TE1 form. A potential return date for Kittle is Week 6's matchup against Tampa Bay. He put up 57 yards and a touchdown against them last year, and will have plenty of easy games against the Giants, Panthers, Browns, and Titans to dominate and put up big numbers.
But once again, this all depends on whether the Niners can stay afloat without their stars right now.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 2 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Travis Kelce, Kyle Pitts, Evan Engram, Brenton Strange, Zach Ertz, David Njoku, Dalton Kincaid. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 2. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 2 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 2 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on players like Travis Kelce, Kyle Pitts, Evan Engram, Brenton Strange, Zach Ertz, David Njoku, Dalton Kincaid. They are one of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 2.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 2 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 2 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 2 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 2 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Travis Kelce, Kyle Pitts, Evan Engram, Brenton Strange, Zach Ertz, David Njoku, Dalton Kincaid compared to others:
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