ChristianKirk

News: 1 day agoKirk (calf) was placed on injured reserve by the 49ers on Sunday with a designation to return.

Spin: Kirk missed the entirety of the preseason after suffering a calf injury at practice July 26, and he will now be forced to sit out at least four contests to open the regular season. The wide receiver signed with San Francisco in the offseason, and he was expected to occupy a prominent role on offense. In his absence, rookie wideout De'Zhaun Stribling (shoulder) will have a chance to be an impact player in his NFL debut Week 1 against the Rams in Australia.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Kirk signed with the 49ers after spending his first eight seasons with Arizona, Jacksonville and Houston. The 2018 second-round pick peaked with a 12th-place finish in fantasy points in 2022, but that marks his only career top-25 finish and he's been way off the fantasy radar the last two seasons, partially due to injury woes (13 missed games). Kirk doesn't have a clear path to consistent targets in San Francisco, with Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel and rookie De'Zhaun Stribling also in the mix (not to mention Christian McCaffrey and eventually George Kittle). The 29-year-old will begin the season on IR and is not on the fantasy radar.