Grading the Pick: San Francisco 49ers shock everyone in second round of 2026 NFL Draft by wildly reaching for De’Zhaun Stribling
The 49ers were patient in the first round, trading down twice. Not so much on the second day of the NFL Draft. Rather than trading down again, general manager John Lynch reached hard for a player who was rated outside the top 100 on the vast majority of rankings boards. How should fans feel about the pick?
With the No. 33 overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft, the San Francisco 49ers have selected Ole Miss wide receiver, De’Zhaun Stribling.
The A to Z Sports 2026 NFL Draft projections had Stribling going just outside the top-100. The industry “consensus” board had him going 99th thanks to a few outlier mock draft results. The vast majority of big boards had at least 10 wide receivers still available ranked higher than Stribling when the 49ers drafted him.
Should 49ers fans still be excited about the pick, despite the obvious reach versus consensus?
What to know about new San Francisco 49ers WR De’Zhaun Stribling
Age: 23
A to Z Sports Draft Projection: Eventual Average Starter
Career Projection:
“De’Zhaun Stribling is a rare wide receiver who somehow produced significantly at three different schools. He broke out as a true freshman back in 2021 for Washington State. Then he worked his way into the WR1 role for Oklahoma State in 2024. Then, of course, he was a huge part of Ole Miss’ magical playoff run season in 2025. Stribling is an old-school “X” wide receiver who will play almost exclusively on the perimeter, moving the chains efficiently with his strength and underrated route tree in the intermediate game.”
Travis May
College Football & NFL Draft Managing Editor
Stribling seriously broke out and produced in every single season that he was healthy. Washington State. Oklahoma State. Ole Miss. It didn’t matter where he was, who was throwing him the ball, or the role he was asked to play, Stribling just found a way. I asked him how he did that at the NFL Combine and here’s what he had to say:
“You work very hard, and you create a lot of trust on the team. I feel like that’s what I’ve done at all three places [I played]. The team trusts me. The coaches trust me. They have a lot of faith in me, that I know my job, my alignment, and my assignment. They see what I can do on the field. So, it gives them confidence that when things are going bad, or when things are going good, they want to give me the ball.”
De'Zhaun Stribling
Ole Miss Rebels Wide Receiver (49ers 33rd overall draft pick)
Stribling is a prototypical “X” wide receiver who will likely play almost exclusively outside in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. He can split inside to run block and punch through contact for some tough yards here and there, but his best advantage comes by physically man-handling defensive backs on the perimeter.
Grading the 49ers selection of De’Zhaun Stribling
Stribling is a fine wide receiver prospect. He played and performed in some pretty big moments throughout his career. He’ll probably stick around in the NFL for a long time as an average starting or rotational wide receiver given his work ethic and build.
Unfortunately, the 49ers just reached way, way too early for him. They essentially reached two full rounds before he was expected to go, likely making him the single worst “reach” of the entire 2026 NFL Draft. This heaps a ton of pressure on Stribling to produce right away, which isn’t fair for a player without elite athleticism or significant versatility.
Hopefully, the 49ers start making wiser choices with the consensus board in mind so they snag the talents they want in pick slots that actually make sense. This one didn’t. Have to get San Francisco a pretty terrible grade for this pick overall.
Grade: D
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