San Francisco 49ersOur read
Written Sun 12:01 am Central, for week 6
Jake Tonges does not play this week, sitting on injured reserve on Sunday's report while the 49ers host the Commanders on Monday night. He hasn't played since week 1 of 2026, missing weeks 2 through 5, and George Kittle is ahead of him among San Francisco tight ends. Washington gives up 22.2 PPR points a game to the position, 30th of 32, but that matchup means nothing to a player who's ruled out. Keep him out of the lineup and stream a tight end who actually takes the field this week.
Written Oct 18, from his facts through last season
The IR designation is the whole decision right now. He has been on it since before week 3 of 2026, he has not played since week 1, and while he sits there our board ranks him under every available tight end at the position. Even in the unlikely event he returns, he comes back to the same situation that capped him last year.
And that situation was modest even at its best. His 2025 run, 93 points in 10 games with a TE30 finish among 137 qualifying tight ends, was built on a 35.6% snap share and an 8.4% target share. Kittle took 22% of the targets himself, McCaffrey another 23%, and Tonges was listed second among SF tight ends again this season. Weeks 1 to 4 of 2025, when his snap share hit 64%, were the peak, and it fell to 24% by weeks 15 to 18. That is a part-time player whose best stretches come only when someone ahead of him is hurt.
Our preseason number was 51 points, TE68 at the position, built on 15 expected games and 3.4 points a game. One of the factors behind that is his touchdown share at 1.0x, a profile that has cost players in his spot 0.7 points a game from one season to the next on average. He also cleared 15 points in only 2 of 10 weeks last year. He is 27 and undrafted, the story has not changed since camp, and the roster spot is worth more than a wait on a fourth-string tight end's return.