The San Francisco 49ers made waves in April when they took Ole Miss’ De’Zhaun Stribling with the 33rd overall pick. He’s a five-year college player who showed some flash (averaging over 14.5 yards per catch in each of his final two seasons, an appealing stat in the fantasy football world), but he never had 900 receiving yards or more than six touchdowns in a single season as a collegian. Furthermore, the draft capital spent on him was far greater than projected.

However, reports coming out of the Bay Area this summer have been overwhelmingly positive, and the question is now simple: How excited are we allowed to get about Kyle Shanahan’s newest toy?

Fantasy Football Outlook: De’Zhaun Stribling

Let’s start with what we know.

We know that Shanahan is an offensive mastermind who has led this team to five straight top-10 seasons in terms of our Offensive Impact grading metric.

We also know that Brock Purdy is on pace to be one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the history of the sport, yet his target hierarchy isn’t exactly clear. George Kittle is coming off a torn Achilles; Ricky Pearsall has had a bumpy start to his career (held scoreless last season with 14 DNPs across his first two years); and newcomer Mike Evans is entering his age-33 season after missing nine games (logging under 40 receiving yards in five of his last six active games).

This situation warrants cautious optimism regarding Stribling. His college stats don’t jump off the screen, but his 6’2″ frame and attention to detail on vertical routes provide a skill set that we can get behind, especially in this system.

But how quickly will he develop into someone we can trust on a consistent basis?

Fantasy Football Value: De’Zhaun Stribling

Right now, he’s an afterthought in redraft leagues, and I think that’s correct. There are over 70 receivers coming off the board before him, and given the condensed target nature of this system in the past, it’s fair to expect a learning curve.

While I’m down on Evans this season, it’s clear that the team is trying to fill the Davante Adams role with him: a veteran with enough savvy and physical dominance to succeed in scoring position. I’m skeptical about his week-over-week value, but Evans is a real threat to score 6–8 touchdowns. Let’s not forget that Purdy’s per-17-game career average isn’t overwhelming in that regard (29.1).

All reporting on Kittle is positive, and if we take that at face value, I think that’s where we lose the plot on Stribling in the short term. Kittle is averaging 9.5 touchdown receptions per 17 games since the Purdy era started in 2022, and we know he efficiently soaks up volume (57 catches on 69 targets last season).

Speaking of efficient volume, Christian McCaffrey was the only 49er with 60 catches last season, he had 102. He’s an offense unto himself, and given the forward-moving nature of seemingly every CMC target, the immediate case for Stribling is thin.

• Mike Evans is going to score.
• Christian McCaffrey is going to handle everything around the line of scrimmage.
• George Kittle can do both.

None of this includes potential growth from former first-round pick Pearsall or two-tight-end sets featuring Jake Tonges. I don’t fear those two factors in the same way I do the primary trio, but for a prospect profile that is grasping at straws, every minor role matters.

The question for Stribling is a long-term one.

Pearsall is on the Purdy timeline, but McCaffrey, Kittle, and Evans are beyond it. This aging core could open up a tremendous opportunity in a year or two for Stribling to become a key cog in Shanahan’s scheme.

Now that’s interesting.

PRACTICE: Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator 

I have my concerns about him working his way into a high-volume role; we didn’t see it in college, and we aren’t yet sure how his game translates to the pros. However, Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings own similar size profiles, and they were both in the 70–80 catch range for San Francisco at their most productive.

Within the next few seasons, as this offense experiences turnover, is it possible that Stribling gives us something like what we saw from Jennings in 2024 (77 catches, 975 yards, 6 TDs)?

I think so. We know the wide receiver position is the lifeblood of successful dynasty rosters, and we know that Shanahan is a good bet for player development. Stribling is a buy in dynasty formats right now, and he might well be a buy throughout this season, as I don’t expect much of an impact out of the gates.

I’m not asking you to buy the Purdy quote or even Stribling as an immediate contributor. I’m asking you to trust the process regarding his physical profile and the long-term situation into which he is entering.