Kyle Shanahan loves the fight 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall has shown in his first season with the team.
The San Francisco coach explained the turbulent start to the season that Pearsall endured.
“What people don’t know about Ricky is he got about two OTA practices and then got hurt in OTAs, pulled his hamstring when he was away for the summer,” Shanahan said Thursday on KNBR. “And he came back and was out the first week of training camp and then when he got right back into training camp, he hurt his shoulder on the first practice.
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“He never got any OTAs or training camp. So, if you go back to his time at Florida, he probably had about three NFL practices before he got shot in the chest. So, all of those injuries happened, and he gets back a week before we’re going to open up against the Jets and he two and a half practices in and then gets shot the next day.”
The 24-year-old was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery in San Francisco's Union Square. Miraculously, Pearsall was not seriously injured and returned to the team after only a month, something Shanahan was impressed with.
“Fortunately, he was able to come back and only miss a month,” Shanahan said. “But when he came back, those were really his first practices and we needed him to play also. I was also proud of Ricky that he’s been able to handle this year. He’s been able to get through it. His body, when you don’t get all of that stuff in a training camp, usually your body doesn’t make it through the season. He’s fought through some wear and tear and gotten through it. I’m just really proud of the guy.”
The rookie wideout has flashed brilliance at times this year, though he has been unable to sustain any consistency from week to week. Part of that is due to the offense's inconsistency as a whole, with subpar play and injuries contributing to a frustrating season for a unit that was regarded as one of the best in the league at the start of the year.
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Still, there’s plenty to like about Pearsall and his future with the team, so expect him to step up to another level in his second NFL season.