San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall has yet to appear in an NFL game after being shot in the chest during an attempted robbery in late August.
Pearsall was walking alone in downtown San Francisco when a man attempted to steal his watch. The receiver took a bullet to the chest that barely missed his vital organs.
San Francisco chose to put Pearsall, the 31st pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, on the injured reserve to keep him out a minimum of four games.
Coach Kyle Shanahan poured cold water on the possibility of the team opening the practice window for Pearsall ahead of San Francisco’s Week 5 home matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.
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“Just don’t feel he’s ready to (practice) this week,” Shanahan told reporters. “I know he’s really close, and when he’s good to go, himself and the medical staff, we will be pumped to have him back. He’s a hell of a player.”
Shanahan was coy when asked what role Pearsall might have with the team once he’s deemed healthy. “We’ll see when he gets back to practice and we’ll judge by that,” the 49ers head coach said.
“I really don’t make any judgments until I see guys go through the practice week. I get excited when guys come off IR whenever they do, just to get them back into practice. And that’s really the first time you see them do any football stuff and you kind of make the decision as the week goes.”
49ers receiver Jauan Jennings has been one of the breakout stars of the NFL this season (
Getty Images)
San Francisco’s first-round pick has yet to see any NFL action after a senior season at Florida where he caught 65 passes for 965 yards and four touchdowns. He improved his draft stock by running a 4.41 40-yard draft at the combine.
Pearsall saw 62% percent of his NCAA action from the slot and was expected to compete with incumbent receiver Jauan Jennings. However, the veteran has lit up the NFL this year with 363 yards and three touchdowns in his first four campaigns of the 2024 season.
The Pearsall news compounds the team’s injury crisis amongst their skill position players. Running back Christian McCaffrey remains out and tight end George Kittle might miss another game with a rib injury. Star receiver Deebo Samuel Jr. has already missed a contest with an injury and Brandon Aiyuk looks a step slow after holding out through training camp for a new contract.
Pearsall was never even a lock to go on the IR in the first place. According to reports, he was angling to play in Week 1 against the New York Jets just days after the shooting.
“Ultimately we decided that the best thing for Ricky was to have a little bit of time,” 49ers general manager John Lynch said before the Jets game “He’s going to need that time physically. He’s going to need that time emotionally, mentally.”
“We made that decision. When we drafted Ricky, we did it for the long term. Ricky is going to be a fantastic player here. He’s eager. He was disappointed but understood that we put him on that list and what that entails.”
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