Ahead of the San Francisco 49ers’ Week 1 matchup with the Rams, De’Zhaun Stribling had already become one of the more interesting names in the conversation. The second-round rookie had spent the preseason bouncing around the depth chart in what was described as a chaotic stretch, and Thursday’s limited action offered a quick look at where he stood.
That look ended early. Stribling didn’t get through the first half before he was carted off with an ankle injury. Still, the snaps he did log said plenty about how the 49ers were using him - and maybe about how Brock Purdy was seeing him, too.
Kyle Shanahan’s side of the picture came into focus fast. In just 22 minutes on the field, Stribling ran 14 routes, the most on the team over that span.
Deebo Samuel, who was viewed as Stribling’s biggest competition for playing time, played the full game and finished with 19 routes overall. For a rookie to get that kind of usage under Shanahan says a lot, especially given the coach’s reputation for leaning on veterans and making young players earn their way up the ladder.
That’s what makes Stribling’s role so notable. Shanahan is not usually eager to hand a rookie meaningful work right away, no matter where he was drafted. But in this case, the rookie appeared to have done enough to be on the field for every one of Purdy’s dropbacks.
The quarterback’s view looked different.
If the route count suggested trust from Shanahan, the target total told a different story from Purdy. Stribling was out there more than anyone else, but he never drew a target. By the time he left with the injury, Mike Evans had already caught four passes, Deebo Samuel had been targeted three times, and even fourth-string Demarcus Robinson had seen a ball come his way.
So while Shanahan may have been comfortable leaning on Stribling, Purdy apparently wasn’t there yet. That kind of split isn’t unusual with a rookie, especially one still trying to learn the offense and build timing with his quarterback. Coaches often see the long game more clearly than quarterbacks do.
Now the injury complicates everything. Stribling is reportedly set to miss at least a month, and that matters because it takes time on the field to build a connection with a quarterback.
He brings an explosiveness the rest of the pass-catching group doesn’t have, and Purdy will need that kind of burst at some point this season. But if the ankle issue stretches deeper into the year, there may not be enough time left for Stribling to earn that trust in a meaningful way this season.
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