De’Zhaun Stribling Fantasy Football Injury Update and How It Affects the 49ers’ Wide Receivers
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Ahead of Thursday’s matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams, there was excitement and anticipation for the debut of rookie wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling. Sadly, Stribling left Thursday’s contest early, as he was carted off in the first half and ruled out for the rest of the game.
Although the injury appeared to be non-contact and a potential Achilles issue at first glance, the positive news is that head coach Kyle Shanahan said Stribling’s Achilles is intact and it’s an ankle injury.
While we wait for more news on Stribling’s status, it’s fair to expect him to miss some time. Taking that into account, let’s take a look at Stribling’s fantasy football outlook after suffering an injury and how it affects the other receivers on the 49ers.
All stats used in this article are from PFF or Sumer Sports unless stated otherwise.
De’Zhaun Stribling, WR, San Francisco 49ers
The hope is that there’s a positive update on Stribling’s injury that allows him to return sooner rather than later. Before Stribling was unfortunately carted off on Thursday night, there were positives to take from his usage.
From the moment the 49ers touched the ball, it was evident that Stribling was going to be a key piece in the offense, as he logged the most snaps among San Francisco’s receivers until his early exit.
49ers WR snap count as of 7:30 in the 2nd quarter (just in case this is Stribling's last snap)
— Nathan Jahnke (@FFNateJahnke) September 11, 2026
De'Zhaun Stribling 21
Mike Evans 17
Deebo Samuel Sr. 9
Demarcus Robinson 7
Jacob Cowing 3
KhaDarel Hodge 1
Out of 26 plays
Unless Stribling is said to have an injury that’ll keep him sidelined until the latter part of the season, he could be worth stashing until he returns. In leagues that have an IR spot, Stribling could potentially be placed there to make room for another player.
Mike Evans, WR, San Francisco 49ers
Along with Stribling making his debut in the NFL and 49ers, veteran Mike Evans made his debut for San Francisco on Thursday night. Although Evans’ numbers in Week 1 don’t jump off the page, he’s clearly going to be a reliable target for quarterback Brock Purdy.
Along with converting a handful of third downs for the 49ers, Evans hauled in six of his seven targets for 49 yards and a touchdown. Evans ran a route on 96.3% of his snaps, and his touchdown came on one of his patented fade routes at the goal line.
Mike Evans leads the NFL with 34 touchdown receptions on go/fade routes since 2018, seven more than the next closest player (Davante Adams).#SFvsLAR | #FTTB https://t.co/K430w7yXbh
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 11, 2026
With Stribling potentially missing time, Evans should continue to be moved around in Shanahan’s offense, after he handled a 22.2% slot rate against the Rams. While Evans has injury concerns of his own at this point in his career, his stock certainly goes up sans Stribling.
Deebo Samuel Sr., WR, San Francisco 49ers
The return of Deebo Samuel to the 49ers was partly lost in the shuffle given the other storylines ahead of Thursday’s NFC West showdown. However, Samuel showed that he can still be an effective weapon in a Shanahan offense.
In addition to Samuel rushing for 12 yards on his lone carry and having a ball-carrier role on the 49ers, he posted 6 catches for 48 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. Samuel logged a formidable 2.38 yards per route run on Thursday, and his touchdown catch came on a creative play where he was lined up in the backfield.
Deebo Samuel has his first touchdown back with the 49ers! pic.twitter.com/6N3CrqDCvN
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) September 11, 2026
While Demarcus Robinson is expected to have a role in Stribling’s absence, it’s unlikely he will handle a role that makes him a reliable weekly fantasy football starter. Even though Deebo could handle more receiver snaps and fewer running back snaps until Stribling returns, he’ll be worth starting in favorable matchups.
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Skyler Carlin is an experienced sports writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience covering the NFL, NBA, MLB, college football, college basketball, and soccer for FanDuel Research and USA Today. Outside of writing, he enjoys cooking, watching movies, and playing video games.
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