Who Should I Start? De'Zhaun Stribling or Caleb Douglas


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
5.2 0.1 0.0 1.8 24.4 0.1

De'Zhaun Stribling News

De'Zhaun Stribling to Begin as Starting Slot Receiver?

Thursday, September 3, 10:19 AM

The Athletic's Matt Barrows thinks the plan is for rookie second-round wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling to be the team's primary F slot receiver and Mike Evans' understudy at the X spot. The Niners brought in veteran Christian Kirk as a free agent, and he has plenty of experience as a slot receiver, but he will start the 2026 campaign on Injured Reserve with a calf injury, opening up a regular role for Stribling out of the slot to begin his first year in the NFL. The 23-year-old from Ole Miss has been one of the biggest risers on draft boards at the receiver position this summer due to a strong training camp and preseason, and the fact that wideout Ricky Pearsall (knee) has already been ruled out for the season. Stribling is a big body at WR at 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds, and he combined for 1,693 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns on 107 receptions in his final two seasons at Ole Miss. He was held out of the preseason finale due to a minor shoulder injury, but he should be ready for Week 1 in Australia next Thursday against the division-rival Los Angeles Rams, where he could quickly start producing alongside Evans. Stribling will be a popular flex option in fantasy football drafts this weekend.


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
4.0 0.1 0.0 1.5 19.5 0.1

Caleb Douglas News

Caleb Douglas Worth a Late-Round Pick After Strong Camp Showing

Wednesday, September 2, 6:36 AM

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Caleb Douglas has generated plenty of buzz after a strong showing throughout training camp and the preseason. Douglas, a third-round rookie out of Texas Tech, sat out the Dolphins' final preseason game, which is a good sign that he'll earn the start in Week 1 against Las Vegas. Miami arguably has the worst wide receiver room in the league, so there's a real opportunity here for Douglas to cement himself as Malik Willis' favorite target. There's a relatively simple path to him leading the team in catches and receiving yards, especially given his main competition right now is Malik Washington and fellow third-rounder Chris Bell. The biggest obstacle for Douglas might be the state of the Dolphins' offense. We expect Miami to run a lot, we're worried about Willis' accuracy as a passer over a full season, and touchdowns may be few and far between. Simply being the Dolphins' potential No. 1 receiver gets him onto the fantasy radar, though, and he's a worthwhile late-round pick for managers in deeper leagues. After all, he has WR3/flex upside once he gets a few games under his belt.


De'Zhaun Stribling vs. Caleb Douglas

Still trying to decide between Stribling and Douglas? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that De'Zhaun Stribling is projected to score 5.2 points this week while Caleb Douglas is projected to score 4.0 points.