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When will George Kittle return and play? Will George Kittle be back again this season? Read the latest George Kittle injury updates and return date for Week 7 (2025).
Fantasy managers who drafted George Kittle have undoubtedly been patiently waiting for the veteran tight end to return from the injured reserve.
Unfortunately, Kittle’s time on the injured reserve required more than the four-week minimum stay. The hope is that an extra week of rest will give Kittle the greatest possible chance to avoid suffering a re-aggravated injury.
What is Kittle’s injury status? Is he able to return in Week 7? Read below to find out.
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George Kittle Injury Update
Kittle injured his hamstring in the 49ers' first game of the season after just 21 snaps. Unfortunately, the injury was severe enough to land him on the injured reserve, guaranteeing that Kittle would miss the next four games of the season.
Technically, Kittle was eligible to return to the field in Week 6. However, head coach Kyle Shanahan made it clear early in the week that the team would give Kittle one more week to ensure he was completely healed and would not re-aggravate the injury.
So far, it appears that the move could pay off.
Something for #49ers fans to be happy about…George Kittle is back at practice. pic.twitter.com/4KyU1J8FrN
— Matt Lively (@mattblively) October 15, 2025
Kittle’s practice window opened ahead of Week 7’s matchup against the 49ers’ matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. If Kittle doesn’t suffer any setbacks, he should be ready to start contributing to your fantasy lineup again immediately.
George Kittle Fantasy Football Outlook
Fantasy managers who have been patiently waiting for Kittle to return will instantly have a top-five option at the position in Week 7 (assuming he is officially activated). Kittle ran just 12 routes in Week 1 yet earned an 11.4% target share. He finished the game with four targets, four receptions, 25 yards, and a touchdown, posting a TE10 finish in PPR formats.
95 yards for a touchdown drive capped off from #49ers Brock Purdy to George Kittle!
pic.twitter.com/uod6IDBUyV— 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙎𝙁𝙉𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨 (@TheSFNiners) September 7, 2025
The early appeal of Kittle was the opportunity to capitalize on a 49ers offense that was missing key pass game weapons like Brandon Aiyuk and potentially Jauan Jennings. Interestingly enough, not much has changed on that front. Aiyuk is still out with no return in sight, and Jennings is currently playing through five broken ribs. Even Ricky Pearsall is navigating a knee injury that has forced him to miss multiple games.
Meanwhile, the 49ers' passing attack has continued to lean on running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end Jake Tonges. Over the last three weeks, Tonges is the TE7 in PPR scoring formats, averaging 14.6 fantasy points per game. During that time, he is the TE3 in targets (23) and the TE5 in receptions (16). Tonges was the TE3 during that three-game stretch in expected fantasy points per game (13.2).
Whenever Kittle is activated, he walks into a situation that allows a 2024 UDFA tight end to produce at a top 10 level in fantasy. It may not be the way fantasy managers envisioned when they drafted him, but there is still more than enough time for Kittle to provide the fantasy production we expected during the summer.
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 7 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Jake Ferguson, Trey McBride, Tucker Kraft, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, Darren Waller. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 7. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 7 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 7 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Jake Ferguson, Trey McBride, Tucker Kraft, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, Darren Waller. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 7.
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 that 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, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with 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 7 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 7 (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 7 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 7 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Jake Ferguson, Trey McBride, Tucker Kraft, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, Darren Waller compared to others:
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