Breaking down the 90 players on the 49ers’ offseason roster in 90 posts (over 90 or so days). Today is WR Ricky Pearsall
It would have been impossible to predict Ricky Pearsall’s rookie season with the San Francisco 49ers. If I had told you that Pearsall’s first catch wouldn’t happen until Week 7, the answers would have never traced back to him getting shot.
If Pearsall wouldn’t have played a snap in 2024, it would have been understandable. His rookie year wasn’t entirely wasted, as he had 46 targets mixed in with a few carries and punt returns. Can the 49ers first-round pick from a season ago build off a promising last month of the season?
Unfortunately, Pearsall didn’t get to partake in the final mandatory minicamp practices due to a hamstring injury. The last thing the Niners need is another wideout slowed by injury. Pearsall will return for training camp, but what will be his role?
Basic Info
Age: 24
Experience: 1 accrued season
Height: 6’1
Weight: 189 pounds
Cap Status
Pearsall enters the second year of his rookie deal. His cap number is $2.84 million, with a guaranteed salary of $1.36 million and a prorated signing bonus of $1.48 million in 2025. For the duration of Pearsall’s rookie contract, he won’t cost more than 1.3 percent of the team’s cap.
Where will Pearsall win as a pro?
Pearsall had 23 targets under 10 air yards as a rookie, 17 between 10-19 yards, and six targets of 20+ yards. The 49ers do a lot of their heavy lifting in the passing game at the intermediate level, but that’s an area where he and Brock Purdy were not on the same page last season. He only caught nine of those targets, resulting in a negative “catch rate over expectation” of -2.0 percent, and was barely in the black for receiving EPA at 0.8. Needless to say, there’s work to be done.
Speed isn’t an issue for Pearsall, which would lead you to believe he’d get more downfield targets moving forward. But in the NFL, everybody is fast. Nuance, tempo, and concise routes are how you get open. When you go back and watch some of Pearsall’s targets, he looks like a player who was figuring out how to be a pro on the fly.
The good news for the 49ers and Pearsall is that he showed promise winning on timing routes outside of the numbers — something that Deebo Samuel struggled with during the previous couple of seasons. Whether it was running out routes or comebacks, Pearsall was able to get in and out of his breaks and move the chains. Therefore, there should be a clear plan for how to utilize him moving forward beyond the typical crossing routes that are Kyle Shanahan staples.
For whatever reason, Purdy was off-target on throws between the numbers at the intermediate level when throwing to Pearsall last season. That’s where being on the same page, working together in the offseason, and having hundreds of reps during training camp will come into play.
Be better than Deebo in ‘25
The wrap that Deebo Samuel has for his final season with the 49ers is pretty bad. Is it as simple as clearing the low bar that Samuel set? It should be. Pearsall’s goal in 2025 should be to surpass Deebo’s performance in 2024. Samuel didn’t bring any value as a runner. However, he did as a returner.
Deebo caught just under 63 percent of his targets last season. Based on where he was targeted and assuming Pearsall will tread along those same lines, that number should be closer to 70 for Pearsall. He should be able to surpass 670 yards if Pearsall gets north of 80 targets like Deebo had last season.
Deebo had at least nine receptions of 20+ yards, including a 76-yarder against the Seahawks. Pearsall having 10+ explosive receptions in 2025 would be a major boost to the passing game. They lacked that over-the-top threat last year without Brandon Aiyuk. That’s not who Jauan Jennings is—so, winning outside of the numbers, occasionally down the field, but at a much more efficient rate. That’s not too much to ask of a second-year pro replacing a former All-Pro and having to do it without a $120 million receiver.
No pressure, Ricky.