SANTA CLARA — General manager John Lynch did not hesitate Tuesday when asked if 49ers rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall is expected to get on the field and make a contribution this season.
“Oh, yeah. Yeah,” Lynch answered. “He’s doing remarkably well.”
Pearsall spent approximately 21 hours at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center after being the victim of a gunshot wound through his chest on Saturday afternoon during an attempted armed robbery near Union Square in San Francisco.
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The 49ers selected Pearsall with the No. 31 overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Despite his limited practice time due to hamstring and shoulder issues, San Francisco has seen enough from Pearsall to feel good about his future.
“When we drafted Ricky, we did it for the long term,” Lynch said. “He’s going to be a fantastic player here. He’s eager.”
The 49ers on Monday placed Pearsall on the reserve/non-football injury list, which makes him ineligible for the first four games of the 2024 NFL regular season.
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Pearsall could be eligible to make his NFL debut as early as the team's Oct. 6 game in Week 5 against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi's Stadium.
But Lynch suggested it might not have been completely unrealistic for Pearsall to be cleared to return to action within a month’s time.
“It’s kind of uncharted territory,” Lynch said. “It’s not every day you deal with something like this. We felt if it was just this scenario and he hadn’t had the other shoulder and all that, it was just a lot to work through, if you were just looking at it physically.
“I thought it was too much to ask, and I relied on our medical experts, and they felt it was too much to ask for him to come back within the next four weeks.”
Pearsall, 23, has been going through physical therapy on his left shoulder after sustaining a subluxation during practice on Aug. 6.
The gunshot wound was to Pearsall’s right side and somehow passed through his back without causing any more serious damage.
“He’s doing remarkable — so much better today than he was yesterday,” Lynch said. “Really, really miraculous. Didn’t touch organs. Feels like all the nerve stuff is good. It’s pretty remarkable.”
Lynch said the 49ers had to make a decision quickly on whether to place Pearsall on the non-football injury list.
The 49ers used his roster spot on Monday to re-sign veteran backup offensive lineman Brandon Parker.
“I wish we had more time to make it,” Lynch said. “But ultimately we felt the No. 1 thing we had to be concerned with was Ricky’s well-being: physically, emotionally, mentally.
“Ultimately decided that the best thing for Ricky was to have a little bit of time. He’s going to need that time physically. He’s going to need that time emotionally, mentally. We made that decision.”
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