When the San Francisco 49ers took wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling with their first pick in the NFL draft, it was considered a massive reach.
Stribling was the 15th-ranked wide receiver in his class, but the sixth taken off the board. Though talented, the selection left many Niners fans scratching their heads. Especially given the fact the previous signing of a pass-catching journeyman might have rendered the pick completely useless.
At this point in his career, Christian Kirk is more of an afterthought than the focal point of a passing attack. He signed with San Francisco on March 16, a little over a month before the draft.
So, when it came time to call Stribling's name, the signing of Kirk seemed more like the addition of a veteran voice in the locker room than an actual key piece of the offense.
However, now in mid-June, it's Kirk's name that sits third on the depth chart, not Stribling.
49ers wideouts will compete for opportunities in very different ways
It's all but certain the Niners will go into the season with Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall as their top two wide receivers, but the third may still be in question.
With coach Kyle Shanahan running a lot of two-wide receiver personnel, Stribling and Kirk will already be competing for what little time the third wideout is given. When all is said and done, the battle will likely come down to what Shanahan and his coaching staff value more.
Both present their advantages, but in completely different ways.
At age 29, Kirk is past his prime, but he has 432 more catches and 5,415 more yards than his rookie counterpart does in the NFL. All that success can be boiled down into one word: experience. San Francisco will likely not need Pro Bowl-level production from their third wide receiver, and sending a guy onto the field who knows the playbook, understands coverages, and can come up with a big catch here and there might be more of what this roster needs.
Despite this fact, Stribling provides a tantalizing ceiling that led to his second-round selection in the first place. The receiver possesses a rare combination of size and strength. At 6-foot-2, he towers over most corners, but his 4.36-second 40 time at the combine also turned heads.
Another thing the 49ers need to keep in mind is whether or not they are willing to waste such an investment. If Kirk starts over Stribling, as he is currently slated to do, it will raise the question of why San Francisco reached for a receiver in the first place, especially when there were other positions that needed much more immediate attention.
If Kirk does indeed win out, the season will be all but a wash for the rookie.
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