De'Zhaun Stribling And 3 Other Fantasy Rookies To Watch On Thursday Night Football
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The 2026 NFL campaign is officially underway, continuing opening week on Thursday night. The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots kicked the season off on Wednesday, with Seattle defending its Super Bowl victory, and tonight, the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers will square off.
Like Wednesday’s game, Thursday’s matchup will present several key fantasy contributors on both sides, drawing plenty of attention to the NFC West clash. Stars like Matthew Stafford and Davante Adams will make their season debut, while some rookies will suit up for the first time in their respective NFL careers.
Let’s look at four rookies for fantasy managers to look out for on Thursday Night Football:
De’Zhaun Stribling, San Francisco 49ers - WR
The San Francisco 49ers entered the offseason looking to bolster their receiving corps, bringing in wideouts Mike Evans and De’Zhaun Stribling. During training camp, Ricky Pearsall was ruled out for the 2026 season due to swelling in his injured knee, thrusting Evans and Stribling into the No. 1 and No. 2 roles in the passing game, respectively. Stribling is slated to take on significant volume early in his NFL career, laying a safe floor for fantasy production, especially in PPR. The matchup against Los Angeles’ defense could hamper his ceiling in Week 1, but he’ll still be slotted in as one of San Francisco’s top targets.
CJ Daniels, Los Angeles Rams - WR
After being selected in the sixth-round of the 2026 NFL Draft, joining one of the NFL’s most talented receiver groups, CJ Daniels emerged with an encouraging performance in training camp that carried into preseason action. With Puka Nacua and Davante Adams leading the way, it’s unlikely that Daniels will see the same volume to that of Stribling, but considering his skill set as a deep threat for Stafford, he could make a significant impact with just a few targets. I wouldn’t start him in any fantasy lineups yet, but Daniels could serve as a quality DFS option for low salary value on TNF.
Kaelon Black, San Francisco 49ers - RB
Coming off a National Championship victory at Indiana, Kaelon Black was brought in by the 49ers in the third round of the 2026 draft. A strong offseason showing, paired with injuries to the running back group, propelled the rookie into the RB2 spot on the depth chart for Week 1. Suiting up behind Christian McCaffrey, it’s unlikely he carves out enough volume to make real fantasy noise on Thursday, but there’s reason to believe he’ll show flashes of upside as a potential injury handcuff down the stretch of the season - as we knock on wood for McCaffrey’s fantasy owners.
Max Klare, Los Angeles Rams - TE
The Rams surprised fans with the selection of Max Klare in the second round of the 2026 draft after bringing in Terrance Ferguson to an already crowded group just last year. Despite the talent among Los Angeles’ tight end group, the front office spent the high pick on Klare with the belief he could develop into one of the offense’s cornerstone pass-catchers. In Week 1, he’ll likely be limited behind the likes of Ferguson, Tyler Higbee and Colby Parkinson, but fantasy players should get a glimpse of what the future could hold for the rookie tight end.
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Ethen Hutton is a MLB, WNBA, College, and Fantasy contributor at On SI. Previously, he's covered the NBA, WNBA and NFL for Sportskeeda. Hutton is also a passionate fantasy football player and an immense music lover.