The San Francisco 49ers' first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft didn't come until the first pick of the second round, and with that pick, they took Ole Miss wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling.
The selection was... surprising, to say the least.
While Stribling could end up being a star, the consensus is that the Niners one thousand percent reached by taking him with the first pick of the second round. He very likely would have been available late in the second round and even early on in Round 3, but something about Stribling made John Lynch and the Niners take him at No. 33 overall.
Seth Walder of ESPN reached out to five front office members and asked them about a few different drafted players, Stribling included, and where they ended up getting selected. He asked what level of "reach" those picks were, and 49ers fans won't like how the draft experts responded.
The options Walder gave to these personnel were:
"A. Not a reach. The league liked them more than the outside.
B. A light reach. The league liked them a little more but they were also taken a little early.
C. A true reach. Most teams likely did not have player ranked in the ballpark they were selected."
For Stribling, one person answered with B but the other four replied with C. That's yet another sign that the Niners didn't need to take Stribling when they did and could have had him later, especially with their next pick at 70th overall.
49ers continue to get hammered for De'Zhaun Stribling selection
The good news is that none of these players in the 2026 NFL Draft have taken a single professional snap yet, so we have no idea how any of them are going to perform. Stribling could even up being a bona fide star, and if he does, then all of these people are going to have to eat their words.
If he fails to live up to his draft stock, well, then a lot of people will be able to say "Told ya so."
For now, though, let's hope that whatever the 49ers saw in Stribling to reach so high on him shines through so that Lynch and the rest of the Niners front office can have the last laugh.
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