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How confident can you be starting 49ers WR Mike Evans in Week 3 vs. Cardinals?

How confident can you be starting 49ers WR Mike Evans in Week 3 vs. Cardinals?

NFL DraftKings Fantasy Advice Season Long DFS

Published:

By: Alex Hunter

San Francisco 49ers wideout Mike Evans ($6,800) exited Sunday’s 35-13 win over the Dolphins with a hip injury. Head coach Kyle Shanahan told the media he didn’t believe the injury was serious and that Evans could have returned if needed.

Evans didn’t practice Wednesday, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport provided another positive update, saying, “there’s a good chance he practices this week and goes.”

Evans should get a practice in at some point this week and play Sunday against the Cardinals, but can fantasy owners trust the 33-year-old with another injury?

Mike Evans Week 3 Fantasy Football Outlook

Evans has been a strong fit with the 49ers this season. The veteran scored 8.4 FPTS against the Dolphins this past Sunday despite playing only 63% of snaps. He opened the season with 16.9 FPTS in Australia against the Rams.

Evans has seen a pass on 23% of his routes and has dropped only one of his 10 targets. Last season with the Buccaneers, Evans finished a career-worst 48.8% catch rate. The wideout is also averaging 2.34 YPPR in San Francisco, up from 1.62 in Tampa Bay last season.

Evans clearly needed a change of scenery, and he should have some big performances alongside quarterback Brock Purdy ($6,500), who has been stellar with an NFL-best 95.7 QBR. Sure, last Sunday’s hip injury wasn’t ideal. But all signs point to Evans having no limitations this Sunday against the Cardinals. It’s also an appealing matchup, with Arizona giving up the eighth-most yards per pass this season (7.7).

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Since joining the 49ers, 82.2% of Evans’ routes have come out wide. It’s an encouraging sign against the Cardinals, who have surrendered the fourth-most yards to players who line up outside this season (313). Jaxon Smith-Njigba torched Arizona for nine receptions, 155 yards, and three touchdowns in Week 2 for an eye-popping 45.5 FPTS, the most by a skill player this season.

Evans likely won’t match the reigning Offensive Player of the Year, but he has a ceiling over 20 FPTS in this spot and can be confidently started in all formats. For DFS, Evans is an elite GPP play, as his hip injury will likely keep ownership low.

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Alex Hunter
Alex Hunter is an avid DFS player and sports handicapper, who has been a proud member of the DraftKings Network team since 2020. He is a data-driven analyst, who earned his bachelor’s degree in communications at Worcester State University and has been in the sports content business for nearly a decade, covering the NBA, NFL and PGA TOUR. Alex is a diehard Boston Celtics fan, who loves to be on the golf course when he isn’t grinding lineups or producing content. For all of Alex’s work or if you need any lineup advice, be sure to follow him @Hunta512 on X.
Disclaimer

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Hunta512) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.