The San Francisco 49ers lost their preseason opener 19-13 to the Tennessee Titans, but the final score shouldn’t affect how you feel about their future.

Look, this game was about the young guys, and a few 49ers rookies gave the coaching staff plenty to feel good about heading deeper into camp.

De’Zhaun Stribling looked the part

I’ll start with the headliner. Everything we’ve heard out of 49ers camp about wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling potentially being one of the top weapons on the team? Well, he backed it up on the field on Wednesday night. Stribling hauled in 7 catches for 63 yards on 8 targets, and the only ball he didn’t come down with was a throw from quarterback Kurtis Rourke that was well behind him and went off his fingertips. 

San Francisco was determined to get him involved early. Kyle Shanahan’s offense put Stribling on a variety of routes and even fed him a jet sweep to get the ball in his hands. The highlight was a 32-yard go ball with Stribling beating Titans cornerback Cor’Dale Flott down the sideline. Flott, by the way, got paid serious money ($15 mil per year) to come to Tennessee. Stribling looked like he belonged, showed no fear, and you could tell that Rourke and the 49ers staff wanted to target him from the jump.

That’s a big deal for a 49ers offense looking for its next wave of playmakers, while also dealing with plenty of injuries out wide. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if he plays the role that Ricky Pearsall was expected to before he was ruled out for the season.

The defense settled in after a rough start

Tennessee’s starters marched 95 yards for a touchdown on the opening drive. After that? San Francisco’s backups locked things down. The 49ers defense didn’t let Cam Ward and the Titans offense get going, which is impressive considering these are guys who probably won’t see much playing time on Sundays, some who were getting a taste of their first NFL action ever.

A couple of defensive rookies stood out. Fourth-round pick Ephesians Prysock out of Washington held up well in coverage all night, including a one-on-one rep in the red zone against Titans rookie wide receiver Carnell Tate, the No. 4 pick in the draft. Prysock blanketed him on an out route and took advantage of a great opportunity. In some rare rookie-on-rookie action, the 49ers corner came out on top.

Then there’s Gracen Halton, another fourth-round pick for the Niners by way of Oklahoma on the defensive line. Halton recorded a tackle for loss and showed off an incredible bull rush that pushed Titans guard Peter Skoronski — who just became the highest-paid guard in league history — straight back into the quarterback and collapsed the pocket. For a Day 3 pick, that’s exactly the kind of flash you want to see in a first preseason game.

The quarterback picture

Adrian Martinez had a rough night, and that’s to be expected with his position on this depth chart. He didn’t have much to work with around him, but he was missing throws and spent most of the evening under pressure. Kurtis Rourke, on the other hand, did a pretty solid job running the offense.

Whether Rourke makes the 53-man roster or lands on the practice squad remains to be seen, but for a third-string quarterback, he held his own. Honestly, the biggest part about that was that we could see De’Zhaun Stribling’s full skillset on display given that he had competent quarterback play.

There’s still a lot of preseason football ahead and more chances for guys to step up. But the takeaway from this game was clear: Stribling, Prysock, and Halton all showed that they have strong potential to contribute for San Francisco this season. The 49ers lost the game, but they won what counted most: seeing rookie players live up to the hype.