Mike Evans Injury Update, Latest on 49ers WR's Status Ahead of NFL Season, Fantasy Football Drafts

The San Francisco 49ers and fantasy football managers alike received some positive news regarding wide receiver Mike Evans on Wednesday.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Evans plans on playing San Francisco's Week 1 game against the Los Angeles Rams even though he has dealt with injuries during training camp. 

"His latest, a groin issue, is considered minor barring a change," Fowler added.

Evans' health has been a major storyline leading into the 2026 campaign, especially since injuries limited him to just eight games last season.

It was the first time in his career he failed to appear in at least 13 games in a season.

That durability is a major reason he has been so consistent since he entered the league as the No. 7 overall pick of the 2014 NFL draft. He surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first 11 years and tallied double-digit touchdown catches in six of them.

Evans will forever be a Tampa Bay Buccaneers legend because of that production, but the 2026 season is his first with a different team. And while it is unrealistic to expect him to post career-best numbers in what will be his age-33 season, he is quite important to San Francisco's aerial attack.

After all, Ricky Pearsall is out for the season with injury, and Brandon Aiyuk is not someone who is going to play for the team. That leaves Evans and Deebo Samuel, who joined the team this offseason, as the top options in the wide receiver room along with rookie De'Zhaun Stribling.

Tight end George Kittle also figures to be a major part of the passing game, but he is coming off a torn Achilles and is still something of a question mark.

Evans will need to provide some answers for the 49ers if they are going to live up to their potential and challenge the Rams and the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West. That makes it all the more important to have him on the field, and it seems like San Francisco will have him available at the start of the season.