The San Francisco 49ers are one of those teams who simply have a knack for finding talent. Whether it's found in the later rounds of a draft, picking up another team's veteran who's been given up on or even undrafted free agents, they're just one of those teams.
They're also not afraid to go get top-tier talent via trade or the first round of the draft when they know what they want. In this case, the 49ers took a chance on selecting Ricky Pearsall in the first round of last year's draft even while boasting Brandon Aiyuk coming off a massive season.
Now, Pearsall would get off to a slow start during his rookie year by no fault of his own, but after Aiyuk went down with an ACL injury, the arrow was pointing up for the former Florida Gator to become a focal point. And, through just a couple of games in 2025, that's exactly what Pearsall has done.
Ricky Pearsall is on his way to becoming the 49ers' clear-cut WR1
Again, this is very early. Two games is a small sample size, but as time goes on, if Pearsall continues to absorb targets and make the most of them, he'll replace a healthy Aiyuk in no time.
If you look at Aiyuk's 2024 season before injury, he only topped 48 receiving yards in one game out of seven. He was well on his way to regression, like it or not. Will Pearsall eventually come down to earth? We'll have to wait and see.
What's been fun to watch with Pearsall, so far, is that he's no stranger to a big play. While Jauan Jennings has two more targets (15) than Pearsall (13), it's the latter who leads in yards per reception by a healthy margin (20.5 versus 15.0).
One thing I'll bring fans' attention to, also, is the fact that of Pearsall's team-leading 164 receiving yards, only 15 of them are after the catch. That isn't a bad thing, either. That means Pearsall has been more about making the bigger plays that count. His average depth of target is a whopping 18.1 yards. Just think about that for a second.
Even Aiyuk's best season, in 2023, saw him finish with an average depth of target at 13.8 yards.
I'll keep hammering the point that it's early. But, Pearsall has been phenomenal, and he's only getting started. When Aiyuk is back, this offense will have yet another talented wide receiver to add into the fold. And, with less pressure on the both of them, Aiyuk and Pearsall can compliment one another well.
Who will be the lead dog when the time comes? My money is on Pearsall.