Dez Bryant is putting his three-time Pro Bowl resume to use as an unofficial route-running instructor for the San Francisco 49ers' rookie class. The former All-Pro, who led the NFL with 16 receiving touchdowns for the Dallas Cowboys in 2014 en route to first-team All-Pro honors, broke down a brief training camp clip of second-round pick De'Zhaun Stribling on X, and his critique zeroed in
on a small but critical detail."I might give him grace if he were pressed and chose to have his outside foot up because it gave him the most comfortable release," Bryant wrote. "But his outside foot being up is why he rolled into the route instead of sticking it. I need my WRs to stick and cross the defender's face violently… especially if we are running in breaking
routes… The minor details make the biggest impact…"
I might give him grace if he were pressed and chose to have his outside foot up because it gave him the most comfortable release. But his outside foot being up is why he rolled into the route instead of sticking it. I need my WRs to stick and cross the defender’s face violently…… https://t.co/0RO27Prpyy
— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) July 26, 2026
The critique carries weight given the hype surrounding Stribling entering the league. San Francisco took the Ole Miss product with the No. 33 overall pick after trading down twice on Day 1, a move that initially puzzled some evaluators. But ESPN's Adam Schefter later reported that multiple teams, including a division rival, viewed Stribling as the best receiver in the entire 2026 draft class. Stribling enters camp with a 6-foot-2, 207-pound frame and finished his lone season at Ole Miss with 55 catches for 811 yards and six touchdowns.
Bryant's point about footwork isn't a knock on Stribling's ceiling so much as a reminder of the fine margins that separate college production from NFL readiness. Stiff, decisive plants at the top of a route create separation and give the quarterback a cleaner window; rolling into a break, as Bryant described, lets a defender stay connected and disrupt timing.
This is also Stribling's first offseason in a Kyle Shanahan offense. He has plenty of time to clean up any issues Bryant or other evaluators see on tape or on the practice field.
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Former Pro Bowl WR gives first impressions of 49ers rookie
