{"id":7367,"date":"2026-08-21T05:38:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T05:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7367"},"modified":"2026-08-21T05:38:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T05:38:15","slug":"49ers-studs-and-duds-stribling-shines-again-black-shows-serious-power-in-blowout-win-over-chargers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7367","title":{"rendered":"49ers Studs and Duds: Stribling shines again, Black shows serious power in blowout win over Chargers"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If you spent the last 48 hours sweating the 49ers\u2019 sleepy, underwhelming joint practice against the Chargers on Tuesday, congratulations: You fell for the NFL\u2019s oldest August grift.<\/p>\n

Read more Motorcyclist killed, driver arrested in suspected hit-and-run in Palo Alto<\/a><\/p>\n

The regular season isn\u2019t won in shorts in El Segundo. It\u2019s built on depth, high-end baseline talent, and a fundamental refusal to look like a mess when actual game lights turn on.<\/p>\n

San Francisco rolled into SoFi Stadium on Thursday night and stomped the Chargers 41-17. They were saving the good stuff for the TV cameras.<\/p>\n

The starters played one series, looked sharp enough to remind everyone why they get paid big money, and then grabbed some baseball caps.<\/p>\n

The backups spent the rest of the night treating Jim Harbaugh\u2019s reserve units like turnstiles.<\/p>\n

Does a 24-point August rout mean anything? Well, it means whatever you want it to mean between now and Thursday\u2019s preseason finale against the Raiders in Las Vegas, when we\u2019ll do this all over again.<\/p>\n

But if you\u2019re looking for signs of life on a roster currently carrying half an orthopedic ward, Thursday delivered.<\/p>\n

Here are the studs and duds from the blowout in Inglewood.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

STUDS<\/h2>\n

De\u2019Zhaun Stribling \u2022 WR<\/strong>
\nYes, there was the touchdown he dropped on a perfectly executed sluggo route.<\/p>\n

But that wasn\u2019t the story. No, it was a second-straight game of the rookie making it all look so easy. Strong hands, strong routes. Against the Chargers\u2019 first-string defense and with both Brock Purdy and Mac Jones, Stribling looked like someone who can be an immediate impact player for the Niners in Year 1.<\/p>\n

The only question now: Can the hype get any louder?<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Kaelon Black \u2022 RB<\/strong>
\nThe third-round pick out of Indiana has the juice, and he delivers a serious punch. Pair him with Christian McCaffrey and the Niners might have themselves not just an elite player (23) but an elite backfield combination.<\/p>\n

Osa Odighizuwa \u2022 DT<\/strong>
\nAn absolute menace from the jump. This is the three-tech the 49ers have been looking for the better part of a decade.<\/p>\n

James Thompson \u2022 DT<\/strong>
\nHas been the best defensive tackle on this team in camp not named Odighizuwa. At some point, the fact that he\u2019s an undrafted free-agent rookie doesn\u2019t matter \u2014 only performance. I\u2019m not sure we\u2019re there yet, but in a week?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Mac Jones \u2022 QB
\n<\/strong>Jones\u2019 practices this preseason have been less than impressive. Not disqualifying, but lackluster.<\/p>\n

Joke is on me for not remembering that Jones is a gamer.<\/p>\n

Not only was he on top of everything Thursday, but he was absolutely ripping passes.<\/p>\n

Is there a quarterback who loves the Bang 8 route more than Jones? I haven\u2019t seen one.<\/p>\n

Sincere McCormick \u2022 RB
\n<\/strong>This is what the preseason is all about: making John Lynch\u2019s life hard.<\/p>\n

McCormick was signed off the street because of the attrition the Niners faced early in camp at the running back position. All he\u2019s done since then has shown viable play from both the backfield and particularly on special teams. With coach-favorite Patrick Taylor going on season-long injured reserve, McCormick has won the fourth running back job (if one exists).<\/p>\n

\n

Austen Pleasants \u2022 OL<\/strong>
\nIs he a standout left tackle? Hardly. He often skirts the line between playable and not.<\/p>\n

Read more San Jose\u2019s Century 21 should be revived as a first-class IMAX theater<\/a><\/p>\n

But Pleasants, who has been getting some one-on-one reps at left guard amid a so-far fruitless battle for that starting position, looked like the best option there against the Chargers.<\/p>\n

Yes, it was against the Chargers\u2019 backups, and no, he doesn\u2019t have much opportunity to rep the position in practice \u2014 which showed up in the third quarter when he missed his assignment, leading to a pick-six touchdown \u2014 but if San Francisco isn\u2019t going to bring anyone else in, having a swing tackle that can play guard sounds pretty valuable.<\/p>\n

Of course, all of that is contingent on Pleasants being healthy enough to play. He left Thursday\u2019s game with what appeared to be a knee injury.<\/p>\n

Jacob Cowing \u2022 PR<\/strong>
\nAll you need is one.<\/p>\n

Cowing entered Thursday\u2019s game on the outside looking in for the Niners\u2019 53-man roster. But an 83-yard punt return touchdown was a deeply impressive play that could have shifted his entire roster trajectory.<\/p>\n

Garrett Wallow \u2022 LB<\/strong>
\nHe\u2019s making the team. The only question is who he knocks off the 53-man roster.<\/p>\n

DUDS<\/h2>\n

Luke Farrell \u2022 TE<\/strong><\/p>\n

A drop and a false start on the opening drive? That\u2019s not a great look for a rookie, much less a veteran.<\/p>\n

Jordan Watkins \u2022 WR<\/strong><\/p>\n

The good: he had a couple of really nice blocks, which were his first two of the preseason (the Tennessee tape was brutal). But his drop of what should have been Mac Jones\u2019 second touchdown of the game (the first was the Stribling block) is the kind of error that he cannot be making.<\/p>\n

And yes, he had a touchdown catch in the fourth quarter \u2014 that was a basic post-seam combo to beat a bland Cover-4 look. The more telling aspect is that situation it was the fourth quarter of a preseason game.<\/p>\n

Perhaps Christian Kirk\u2019s injury keeps Watkins on the team, but he\u2019s unquestionably on thin ice after this game.<\/p>\n

Jacob Cowing \u2022 WR<\/strong><\/p>\n

He had the play of the day as a punt returner, but he was brutal as a wide receiver during the useful portions of Thursday\u2019s game, registering one bad drop and two shoulda-had-\u2019ems (it\u2019s an unofficial stat I keep).<\/p>\n

Everything said about Watkins\u2019 precarious spot can be said about Cowing. The latter has the special teams advantage, though.<\/p>\n

Deebo Samuel \u2022 PR<\/strong>
\nThe Niners ran him back there for two punt returns to start Thursday\u2019s game, and it went about as well as you would expect for someone who has barely practiced the role (he had a brutal drop in Sunday\u2019s session) and has had only four returns since the end of high school (all at South Carolina).<\/p>\n

Samuel can surely handle a fair-catch-only role, but Thursday did not look like the start of something interesting.<\/p>\n

Jaden Dugger \u2022 LB<\/strong>
\nSpent the first half floating between both the strong-side and weak-side linebacker positions.<\/p>\n

The Niners are hoping he can be a tight-end equalizer in coverage \u2014 and he might be \u2014 but on plays where he\u2019s not in coverage, he is overtly confused. When he wasn\u2019t just standing around trying to catch up to the speed of the play, he was running into his own teammates.<\/p>\n

Again, his athleticism makes him a worthy project, and there\u2019s short-term special teams upside, but he\u2019s a big project.<\/p>\n

Enrique Cruz \u2022 OT<\/strong>
\nHas been on ice skates in pass protection since Day 1 of camp. Extremely difficult to imagine how the Niners, given all their questions on the line, can keep him on the 53-man roster.<\/p>\n

Read more Apple icon Steve Wozniak enthralls Bay Area crowd with stories about his career<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

San Francisco 49ers – Los Angeles Chargers: The Niners’ 41-17 win was highlighted by another strong De’Zhaun Stribling performance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7366,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n49ers Studs and Duds: Stribling shines again, Black shows serious power in blowout win over Chargers - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7367\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"49ers Studs and Duds: Stribling shines again, Black shows serious power in blowout win over Chargers - 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