Rookie WR Stribling has ankle surgery, will miss much of 49ers’ season

SANTA CLARA — Wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling underwent ankle surgery Wednesday and is likely out at least 10 weeks, though the 49ers are holding out hope he could return to finish his rookie season.

Stribling, drafted atop the second round with the 49ers’ first selection, will go on injured reserve before Sunday’s home opener against the Miami Dolphins.

Stribling started and battled through 21 snaps before hobbling to the 49ers’ medical tent and requiring a cart ride to the locker room before halftime of their season-opening 27-7 win over the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia. He reportedly tore his deltoid ligament, and that injury was not exacerbated by him returning to the game, coach Kyle Shanahan said.

“He was down. He was hoping it wouldn’t be as bad as it was,” Shanahan said of Stribling’s postgame spirits. “He had such a good week of practice and training camp, he was down. It’ll pass and he’ll be back.”

Tight end Jake Tonges will not return this season, however, as he required surgery to repair a medial collateral ligament in his right knee, Shanahan said. Tonges went on injured reserve before Wednesday’s first official practice since their Australia trip.

Wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge, a ninth-year veteran and special-teams ace, was promoted from the practice squad, and the 49ers filled that spot with veteran tight end Jack Stoll.

Tonges injured his right knee when his leg collided with an onrushing Myles Garrett in the 49ers’ backfield on Deebo Samuel’s 12-yard run 2 minutes before halftime. On Monday, the 49ers added tight end Brayden Willis to the 53-man roster and used his former practice squad spot to sign defensive tackle McKinley Jackson.

Deebo Samuel and Demarcus Robinson are the top candidates to start alongside Mike Evans. Samuel played just 27-of-65 offensive snaps in the opener (six catches, 48 yards), while Robinson got 41 snaps (two catches, 50 yards) and Evans had 49 snaps (six catches, 49 yards, one touchdown).

Hodge played just one of the 49ers’ 65 offensive snaps upon getting elevated from the practice squad, and he split a tackle among his 12 special-teams snaps. He’s totaled 67 receptions for 1,026 yards and two touchdowns over 119 career games, having played for the Rams (2018), the Cleveland Browns (2019-20), the Detroit Lions (2021) and the Atlanta Falcons (2022-25).

Other wide receivers on the 49ers roster are Jordan Watkins (inactive Week 1) and return specialist Jacob Cowing, who played just five offensive snaps in the opener and returned two punts. There’s been no indication Brandon Aiyuk will ever rejoin the team after going on the reserve/left squad list last season. Ricky Pearsall was placed on season-ending IR after undergoing knee surgery early in training camp.

JET LAG AFTERMATH

Five days since returning from their week-long Australian stay, Shanahan said the 49ers are on their normal schedule and feeling fine. “We’re totally good now,” Shanahan said. “Speaking for myself I felt like crap all weekend. I was good by Monday. Some guys felt fine right away, some went through the same stuff. We’re all good now.”