Coach Yac 🗣@Coach_Yac
“The 49ers weren’t flying blind with their selection of De'Zhaun Stribling with the first pick in the second round of the draft.”
— Albert Breer
Albert’s thoughts on the 49ers drafting Stribling:
“If you would have asked me before the draft began when I thought the Ole Miss receiver would be drafted, I’d have guessed he’d go 35th to the Titans. At that point, of course, I didn’t know Tennessee would take Carnell Tate fourth; I had them selecting LB Arvell Reese at 4 (their decision was between those two). And in an alternate reality in which Reese goes at 4, I believe Stribling would’ve been a real consideration at 35. That didn’t happen, but it’s an example of how Stribling was more highly thought of than the public knew. I got more proof of that prior to Day 2 of the draft, when a few coaches brought him up to me. And the truth is, for San Francisco, getting there on him was a process. Going into the final two weeks before the draft, the Niners viewed him as a really good talent, and probably a late second- or early third-round pick.
That’s around when GM John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan started drilling down on prospects together. They saw a big receiver who ran 4.36 at the combine. They saw a player who came on late, starring in the playoffs, and talked to ex-Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, who conceded he was late to the party on Stribling, which limited him a bit early in the year, and that his offensive coordinator, Charlie Weis Jr., saw a special talent right away. They then went back deeper into his tape from Oklahoma State and saw more in-breaking routes, and Washington State, where they saw him star in the screen game. A more complete picture was coalescing. They also knew he probably wasn’t going in the first round.
Meanwhile, there was a cluster of players they felt comfortable taking with the 27th pick, and they made the decision that if that pool of guys was drained by the time they got on the clock, trading down would be the right move. So the days before the draft, Lynch worked out terms on a trade down to 30 with Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan on the contingency that the players they were considering were gone. When they got on the clock, the aforementioned pool was empty, so they dealt the pick to Miami, who moved up to select San Diego State CB Chris Johnson. Then, ahead of getting on the clock at 30, they looked at Stribling, and figured one more move down would make sense.
So San Francisco traded with the Jets, who moved up to select Indiana WR Omar Cooper Jr., and landed at the top of the second round. The Niners fielded calls at that catbird seat of 33, but the prices weren’t quite right and there was enough concern that other teams saw Stribling like they did, so Lynch and Shanahan pushed the button.
The Niners had gotten themselves to a point where they didn’t want to lose Stribling at 33. Every year, they designate certain prospects who check every box from an athletic, football and character standpoint as “gold helmet” players. This year, they had 16 gold helmets, and Stribling was one of them. In addition, Shanahan’s vision for Stribling in his offense was crystal-clear, both in the short and the long term. To me, this is the sort of case you see closer to the draft every year, where a quiet drumbeat grows on a player and they wind up going before the public expects them to. Johnson, who went in the Niners’ original slot, is an example of that, as is Dallas’ second first-round pick, UCF edge rusher Malachi Lawrence. Time will tell whether Stribling is a reach. For now, I know the Niners feel pretty good about getting him.”
