The 49ers are dealing with multiple significant injuries at wide receiver, and they’re digging deep on the depth chart. It didn’t seem to slow them down on Sunday, though, as they bounced back from their first loss of the season with a big, 38-17 win at home against the Raiders. With multiple injuries ahead of him, Jordan Watkins took advantage of his opportunity and had a big game. Is he someone who makes sense to pursue as fantasy football waiver wire sleeper this week? Che turn his Week 9 success into a meaningful enough role to be a fantasy starter the next few weeks?
Let’s look at the latest injury news on the 49ers receivers, and see what we can expect from Watkins in the coming weeks.
49ers Injury Updates
The 49ers lost second-year receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee) for the year before the season even began, and rookie De’Zhaun Stribling, who looked ready to step up in his place, went down with a significant ankle injury in Week 1 and is still on IR. Christian Kirk was on IR with a calf injury before returning for one game and then going back on IR with a knee injury.
When healthy, Mike Evans has been the team’s top receiver. However, he is dealing with an Achilles injury that has kept him out for the last three weeks, and he wasn’t even able to return to practice after the Week 8 bye week. Deebo Samuel has also been out for multiple weeks, and has not practiced since his Week 5 hamstring injury. Evans and Samuel are not on IR and could return soon, but they haven’t been able to practice yet, so they may also need at least one more week before returning.
The 49ers did get Demarcus Robinson back from his IR stint in Week 9, and he caught three of his four targets for 22 yards against the Raiders. Robinson worked alongside Watkins, Brandin Cooks, Jacob Cowing and KhaDarel Hodge. Evans and Samuel will likely play ahead of all five of those receivers when healthy, but Watkins made a strong case to be more involved going forward.
Jordan Watkins’ Big Break
Watkins drew positive reviews from coach Kyle Shanahan as a rookie in 2025 and for his work this past offseason. However, he was buried on the depth chart and was a healthy inactive in Week 1. He didn’t get into the mix until Week 3 when he caught a pair of deep targets for 60 yards.
He went back to zero targets for the next two games, but re-emerged in Week 7 against the Falcons when both Evans and Samuel were out. In that game, he almost had a beautiful toe-tap touchdown, but even without that score, he was solid with three catches for 56 yards in the loss. He was expected to go back to the bench in Week 9 after the bye, but with Samuel and Evans still out, he got another chance to shine.
Against the Raiders in Week 9, Watkins led the receivers in snaps and was tied for second in targets behind only George Kittle. He caught all four passes thrown his way and finished with a team-high 86 receiving yards and his first NFL touchdown.
Watkins’ future role is uncertain because of all the injury issues, but he has shown big-play ability and has a solid connection with Brock Purdy in Kyle Shanahan’s productive offense. In Week 10, the 49ers have a favorable receiver matchup against the Cowboys before tougher matchups against the Vikings and Seahawks. Further ahead, they have some favorable matchups late in the season, including matchups against the Giants, Chargers and Eagles.
Watkins is still a high-risk waiver wire sleeper since his long-term workload is uncertain as other receivers return, but he has enough upside to be worth considering, especially if you need immediate help at the position in Week 10.
The Bottom Line: Add Jordan Watkins as a Streamer or Short-Term WR Solution
Watkins should stay involved enough to be a starting option in standard-sized leagues as long as either Samuel or Evans remains out against the Cowboys. If both are out, he’ll have even higher upside and be a great snag for next week’s game against the Cowboys. If both players return, he still makes sense as a stash option since both Samuel and Evans have been so injury-prone over the last few seasons.
For DFS fantasy football contests, like the NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] on DraftKings, Watkins has a salary of just $3,800 in Sunday’s matchup against the Cowboys. I highlighted Watkins as one of my favorite bargain receivers last week, and he delivered that big game. He’ll be an amazing bargain play for DFS again this week if either Samuel or Evans is out in Week 10.
