The San Francisco 49ers kept their fans in suspense over the course of Round 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft, waiting until the 27th overall pick to announce the first of what eventually turned into two trade-downs that saw them drop out of the first round entirely.
Clearly, general manager John Lynch felt the prospects available at No. 27 overall weren't totally worth that pick, so dropping further down the board and into Round 2 was the smarter play.
But the Niners still need to add rookie talent. And with a deep array of options available, Lynch and Co. finally opted to make a selection at No. 33 overall, grabbing wide receiver 49ers finally put a halt to NFL Draft trade-downs by selecting De'Zhaun Stribling out of Ole Miss.
49ers maximize positional value by grabbing De'Zhaun Stribling on Day 2 of draft
According to ESPN's Nick Wagoner, San Francisco was reluctant to grab either a safety or a guard early in the draft, which meant Lynch was paying close attention to positional value heading into the latter stages of the first round.
Yet it was still something of a surprise to grab Stribling, who might've been more of a late day-two selection rather than someone on the fringes of Round 1. And with Mike Evans and Christian Kirk already ahead of the rookie on the depth chart, plus Ricky Pearsall's presence, it's a wonder if Stribling doesn't have much of an impact anytime soon.
In selecting Stribling, though, the Niners bank on getting a prospect who can make an impact in a few year's time once Evans and Kirk are out of the picture.
And it's certainly a better selection in Round 2 than it would've been in the first round.
True, San Francisco's remaining list of needs still requires attention, and it'll be interesting to see just how much Lynch and his staff work the big board to ensure the next wave of draft pickups checks off his team's necessary boxes.
At least the 49ers can cross off this pressing need, though.
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