De'ZhaunStribling

News: 1 day agoStribling underwent ankle surgery Wednesday and is expected to miss 10 weeks, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Spin: The 49ers have been expected to place Stribling on injured reserve, and now there's a firmer timeline for his return. It appears the talented rookie will miss the bulk of the season and be sidelined until close to Thanksgiving. The team is dealing with a bevy of injuries to its pass-catching group, as Christian Kirk (calf) is on short-term IR and Ricky Pearsall (knee) is out for the year. The team promoted KhaDarel Hodge from the practice squad Wednesday for added depth. Demarcus Robinson and Jacob Cowing also project to see role increases in the interim.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Stribling was selected by the 49ers with the 33rd overall pick in April's draft. Stribling had a productive collegiate run, catching 44-plus passes in four of his five seasons, three of which came with different schools. That production included 52-882-6 and 55-811-6 receiving lines at Oklahoma State and Ole Miss over the past two seasons. Stribling primarily worked as a perimeter receiver and peaked with a 22% target share with OSU in 2024. His overall efficiency is pedestrian, but he has good size and speed (4.36 40-yard dash at the combine) and is a plus blocker. Stribling has plenty competition for Year 1 targets (Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey), so a slow start is possible, but it's likely he'll eventually find his way to a bigger role and fantasy relevance. He's a fine mid-round upside pick.