C.J. Beathard, Pierre Garcon's Fantasy Outlook After Jimmy Garoppolo's Injury

The San Francisco 49ers received a major blow Sunday, with star quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffering a knee injury in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs that resulted in him being carted off the field.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan noted that he will find out the extent of the injury Monday and that the team is worried it's an ACL. The injury may define the rest of the team's season and leaves several glaring questions for fantasy players as well.

Namely, how will backup quarterback C.J. Beathard and wide receiver Pierre Garcon fare in his absence?

It's...not good. Beathard, 24, did not play well for the team during his rookie season, throwing for 1,430 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions in six games. He completed just 54.9 percent of his passes and only had one game with more than a single touchdown pass. In three games, he didn't throw for a single score.

Granted, it's unfair to judge any quarterback based solely on their rookie season. But it's also fair to question whether Beathard has improved enough to have any fantasy relevance in year two. And it's not as though he has elite weapons in the pass game in Garcon, Marquise Goodwin, Trent Taylor and Dante Pettis.

For the time being, there's no reason to roster Beathard. You can find better replacements for Garoppolo.

Garcon likely will see his value take a hit as well. He appeared in three games with Beathard under center last year, catching just 12 passes for 121 yards and no scores. That comes out to an average of four receptions for 40 yards per game, or just four fantasy points in standard scoring leagues per contest.

Those aren't inspiring numbers. Garcon remains a player worth monitoring as a potential flex option depending on the matchup, but he should absolutely be downgraded with Garoppolo on the sidelines. In 10-team leagues, he's in danger of entering WR4 territory.

Even with Jimmy G under center, the veteran wideout has struggled this season, catching just seven passes for 89 yards and no touchdowns in three games.

In addition to Garcon, every Niners pass-catcher can be downgraded from a fantasy perspective for as long as Garoppolo is out.

Running back Matt Breida will likely be less potent without Garoppolo keeping defenses honest as well, but he maintains flex status at the very least since he should see a heavy dose of touches.