The San Francisco 49ers are heading into the 2025 NFL season with a question mark at the wide receiver position.
After trading longtime star Deebo Samuel to the Washington Commanders, the 49ers are betting on a couple of players to step up in a big way. With Brock Purdy needing as much support as possible, the team is taking a major gamble.
Of course, the two players who San Francisco is hoping to see step up are Brandon Aiyuk and Ricky Pearsall.
Aiyuk is still working his way back from the torn ACL that he suffered last season. Pearsall is looking to have a breakout season in year two.
With that being said, the 49ers made a massive roster move on Sunday.
Pearsall has been dealing with a hamstring injury that he suffered during OTA’s. However, the team was able to activate him off of the physically unable to perform list on Sunday.
Kyle Shanahan, the team’s head coach, opened up with more details about why San Francisco has handled things the way they have with Pearsall.
“We’re not going to throw a wideout out there the first three days,” Shanahan said. “We don’t want to pull it again until we see his conditioning and everything, which we should get in three days, and then he should be good.”
During his rookie season with the 49ers last year, Pearsall played in 11 games. He racked up 31 receptions for 400 yards and three touchdowns.
What made his rookie season even more impressive is that he had started off the season missing time due to a gunshot injury that he suffered. Pearsall was shot in the chest when he was robbed at gunpoint in August.
Hopefully, the 24-year-old wide receiver is ready to step up. San Francisco has a big role in mind for him and he’ll be asked to handle a large workload to help take pressure off of Purdy.
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