San Francisco used its second-round pick, No. 33 overall, on De'Zhaun Stribling back in April, and plenty of draft analysts called it a reach at the time. Stribling's college path wasn't exactly a straight line either — he started at Washington State, transferred to Oklahoma State, and finished last season at Ole Miss, where he caught 55 passes for 811 yards and 6 touchdowns and helped the Rebels reach the College Football Playoff semifinals. None of that screamed first-round buzz. Then he stepped on an NFL field.
That opening-drive line was just the appetizer. Stribling finished his preseason debut against Tennessee with 7 catches for 63 yards on 8 targets, all in the first half, and reportedly walked away with Pro Football Focus's highest grade among any pass-catcher on the field, including tight ends and running backs. Kyle Shanahan liked what he saw too, praising his hands and physicality after the game. The fantasy football internet noticed immediately.
Targets per route run leaders among rookie wide receivers in the preseason since 2015 (min 15 routes run): 1. De'Zhaun Stribling (59.1%) 2. Tank Dell (45.0%) 3. Jaxon Smith-Njigba (43.8%) 4. Amon-Ra St. Brown (43.5%) (It gets worse after 4, but it's a good tweet, isn't it?)
JJ Zachariason's numbers put the debut in real historical context: Stribling's 59.1% target share per route run is the best mark for a rookie receiver in preseason since 2015, ahead of names like Tank Dell, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Amon-Ra St. Brown on that same list. That's the kind of stat that turns a depth-chart afterthought into a name every fantasy manager is suddenly typing into their mock draft.
Brock Purdy himself got in on the praise, telling Pat McAfee's show that Stribling is smart, runs great routes, and has been a great addition to a crowded 49ers receiver room. Coming from the quarterback who'll actually be throwing him the ball, that carries more weight than any preseason stat line. It also lines up with what analysts saw on tape — Hayden Winks called one of his routes over the middle 'A-tier' work straight out of the Shanahan offense.
Hayden Winks broke down a Stribling route where he stayed in stride working over the middle, calling it a staple rep in the Shanahan offense.
The fantasy community has fully embraced the bandwagon at this point — Yahoo's Hayden Winks and Matt Harmon officially declared themselves members of 'The Strib Club,' FantasyPros put him on a short list of rookies you need to draft, and Scott Barrett is already fantasizing about him falling to Round 4. It's the kind of viral snowball that can inflate a redraft ADP fast, which is exactly why some of the smarter voices in the room are hitting the brakes.
Rich Hribar's caveat is the right one to keep in mind: Stribling hasn't produced a single real fantasy point yet — this is all preseason. David Lombardi, who covers the 49ers closely, is already needling the doubters who slammed the pick back in May, but the actual verdict on Stribling won't come until real games count. For now, San Francisco's receiver room has a legitimate new name in it, and dynasty and redraft managers everywhere are scrambling to figure out how much of this preseason buzz is real before Week 1.