Jeff Mueller explained that rookie Ricky Pearsall landed on the preseason PUP list by rule, not because of a serious setback. Pearsall finished OTAs sidelined by what the team labeled a mild hamstring strain, and under league rules any player who hasn’t practiced automatically defaults to PUP when camp opens. Mueller expects the wideout to be removed as soon as the first full practice—"Wednesday at the latest"—and labeled the soft-tissue issue insignificant. Because the market has already baked in risk, Mueller is holding his existing Pearsall exposure and will keep drafting him as a late-round flyer who could benefit if Brandon Aiyuk’s ramp-up lingers or Jauan Jennings’ contract squabble drags on.

Matt Harmon said Ricky Pearsall is the 49ers wideout he wants to draft most aggressively once the rookie is taken off the preseason PUP list. Harmon’s Reception Perception charting showed Pearsall "awesome against man coverage" down the stretch of his college career, and he believes that trait translates into a "singular, unique" role in Kyle Shanahan’s offense that no other healthy receiver currently fills. With Brandon Aiyuk still rehabbing a major injury and Jauan Jennings embroiled in a contract standoff, Pearsall could open camp as the primary Z/slot weapon. Harmon thinks the uncertainty has pushed Pearsall’s ADP far too low for both best-ball and season-long formats, calling him a "late-round lottery ticket" who could return starting-caliber production by mid-season.

Ian Hartitz pushed back hard on the Pearsall enthusiasm, calling him "an older prospect who forced zero missed tackles all year." Hartitz reminded listeners that Pearsall’s only real splash play came in the shoot-out versus Detroit and that, upon returning from injury, he logged just 21 total yards over a three-week span despite a 70% route rate. He compared Pearsall’s Lions outburst to Diami Brown’s one-off playoff performance—fun but hardly predictive. Hartitz believes Aiyuk (once healthy) and Samuel remain the only 49ers receivers worth rostering and warned that Pearsall could be the odd man out if Shanahan leans on his run game. For Hartitz, Pearsall’s ADP rise is narrative-driven fool’s gold he’s happy to fade.

Jake Ciely labeled Ricky Pearsall—whom he jokingly nicknamed "Ricky Bullets"—as the true breakout candidate in San Francisco. Ciely noted that Brandon Aiyuk is "super questionable" for Week 1 and could even open on PUP, leaving at least a month of starting snaps up for grabs. While the fantasy community gravitates toward Jauan Jennings after last year’s playoff production, Ciely argued Pearsall offers the higher ceiling because he can run the full Slayton-plus-Shepard route tree that Kyle Shanahan covets. Ciely expects Pearsall to stick as the No. 2 boundary receiver even after Aiyuk returns, pushing Jennings to a rotational role. He sees top-30 wide-receiver upside in a Brock Purdy offense that ranked top-five in EPA per drop-back last year, making Pearsall a screaming value at his current undrafted status in 12-team leagues.

Silva labeled Ricky Pearsall an "absolute alpha" and the most secure 49ers wideout given Brandon Aiyuk’s ACL recovery, Deebo Samuel’s departure, and Jauan Jennings’ contract dispute. Pearsall’s 4.41 forty paired with a 6.60 three-cone (top-five all-time) screamed scheme fit for Kyle Shanahan’s YAC-heavy system. Silva recalled Pearsall’s off-field toughness— famously disarming a robber— as proof of the mentality Shanahan covets. With George Kittle the only other locked-in target earner, Silva expects the first-round rookie to open the year inside in 11 personnel and eventually handle the versatile "Debo" role, projecting 115 targets and efficient WR2 numbers in what should again be a top-five EPA offense.

Overzet warned drafters not to chase Ricky Pearsall up the board. He reminded listeners the rookie’s late-season surge came in just two games when Deebo Samuel was hurt, giving Pearsall an unsustainably high route share. With only that small sample and a profile that projects more like a field-stretcher (a Jamison Williams type) than a 25-percent target-share alpha, Overzet believes Pearsall lacks the ceiling people are pricing in. If Pearsall starts creeping into the 5th-round range previously occupied by Jennings, Overzet advised passing until his cost settles back to a more reasonable level.

Sean Koerner pushed back on Pearsall enthusiasm, arguing the sophomore still profiles as the fourth-best pure wide receiver on his own roster once everyone is healthy. Koerner noted that Kyle Shanahan used 11 personnel at the league’s lowest rate last season; when Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings are active, Pearsall could simply be the odd man out. He also listed Demarcus Robinson and a fleet of athletic Day-3 fliers as additional threats for snaps. Koerner is willing to dabble only if Pearsall slips into the WR5/6 draft pocket, warning that drafters counting on a breakout are betting on multiple injuries or an unexpected philosophical shift from Shanahan’s run-first, two-WR attack.

Chris Raybon said Ricky Pearsall is the only 49ers wideout he is actively targeting right now. Raybon reminded listeners the former first-round pick never had a normal rookie ramp-up—Pearsall missed all of camp, the preseason, and the first six regular-season weeks after being shot during a robbery attempt. Once the weather cleared and Brock Purdy could actually throw, Pearsall flashed a legitimate ceiling with three straight 70-plus-yard games to close the year. Raybon thinks those contests are a better indicator of upside than the mid-season stretch in torrential rain where Pearsall drew just four targets on 100 routes. With Brandon Aiyuk rehabbing an ACL/MCL tear and Jauan Jennings playing contractual hardball, Pearsall could open camp as Purdy’s healthiest outside option. At an ADP outside the top-40 receivers, Raybon views him as a perfect high-upside WR4/5 in Season-long leagues and a cheap spike-week chip in Best Ball tournaments.

Jakob Sanderson advised scooping Ricky Pearsall while he is still affordable, predicting the rookie’s ADP will keep rising as drafters digest the Jauan Jennings contract saga and the 49ers’ offensive environment. Sanderson admitted he had been underweight because he preferred Jaden Reed and was snagging running backs like Quinshon Judkins and Caleb Johnson in that range, but Jennings’ uncertain status and Pearsall’s first-round draft capital have changed the calculus. He believes Jennings ultimately stays in San Francisco, yet merely having the veteran’s future in question is enough to drive Pearsall’s price from the late-90s into the mid-80s by August. Given Brock Purdy’s hyper-efficient passing attack (top-3 in EPA per dropback last year) and Kyle Shanahan’s willingness to run 3-WR sets when game scripts demand it, Sanderson wants to secure exposure now rather than face a flat-out fade when Pearsall costs a seventh-round pick. He framed the move as classic anti-fragility—buy before the news is fully priced in, then let the market do the work.

Pat Kerrane nabbed Ricky Pearsall at pick 79 and said the rookie’s ADP will jump two rounds if Jauan Jennings is dealt. He assigns roughly a 15-percent probability that San Francisco moves Jennings—similar to the unexpected Jonnu Smith trade last offseason—and noted Pearsall would then operate as Brock Purdy’s full-time slot man in a Kyle Shanahan offense that ranked first in yards per attempt. Even without a trade, Kerrane likes the floor: Pearsall’s 30 percent college target share and 4.41 forty suggest he can carve out schemed touches immediately, with CMC drawing safety help. In a receiver tier he calls “completely flat,” Kerrane views Pearsall as the only name that could leap into the mid-fifth by August, giving current drafters free closing-line value.

Mike Leone warned drafters not to chase Ricky Pearsall’s rising price just because Jauan Jennings is posturing for a new deal. Inside ETR’s Slack, he and the analytics crew have Pearsall roughly ten spots BELOW current ADP, while Evan Silva and the film grinders have him a whopping 30 spots ABOVE it. Leone argued that Pearsall has already absorbed the ‘Iuke on PUP’ and ‘Jennings hold-out’ headlines without any tangible camp evidence that targets are actually funneling his way. Instead of paying for pure speculation, Leone is sliding Pearsall behind similarly-priced Green Bay wide-outs who own clearer weekly roles. Until beat writers confirm Pearsall is running in two-wide sets, Leone considers him an unnecessary reach whose range of outcomes still skews toward rotational snaps rather than a rookie-year breakout.

Davis Mattek admitted Ricky Pearsall is ‘probably not even a good NFL player yet’ but still called him a slam-dunk structural pick in the Round-9/10 range. Pearsall checks every best-ball box Mattek cares about: first-round draft capital, a hyper-efficient Kyle Shanahan system, Brock Purdy’s league-best catchable-ball rate, and the NFL’s softest opposing pass-defense schedule. Mattek expects Shanahan to manufacture touches, projecting a 75 % route rate, 22 % targets per route when on the field and plenty of schemed YAC. Even if the rookie never beats man coverage, Mattek sees a realistic path to WR20 overall thanks to easy zones and red-zone motion plays that land Pearsall in space. He is hammering the pick whenever the room lets him slide past Pick 100.

Evan Silva labeled rookie Ricky Pearsall his third ‘must draft’ after San Francisco let Deebo Samuel walk and hinted Brandon Aiyuk could open the year on reserve-PUP. Pearsall owns a freaky 6.64 three-cone and 4.41 forty, and Matt Harmon charted him as the 49ers’ best man-coverage winner during last season’s late-year cameo. Silva projects Kyle Shanahan to funnel more pre-snap motion and manufactured touches—roughly an ‘80 percent Deebo role’—to Pearsall, whose FantasyPros ADP sits at WR43/94 overall. Silva has moved him up to 65th overall, well ahead of teammate Jauan Jennings, arguing Pearsall brings more explosion than the 4.7-speed Jennings and will be Shanahan’s preferred YAC weapon. He also pointed to the league’s easiest schedule and Robert Saleh’s return as DC to keep game scripts favorable, calling Pearsall a smash pick anywhere after Round 6 in best ball or redraft.

Peter Overzet said managers should snap up Ricky Pearsall at his current mid-70s BBMVI ADP because the market has not priced in Brandon Aiyuk’s looming stay on the PUP list. Overzet expects that once the PUP designation becomes official, drafters will push Pearsall and Jauan Jennings up "eight to ten picks" while Aiyuk slides. He noted that Pearsall already fits the 49ers’ YAC-heavy scheme and is drawing steady first-team reps in camp. The receivers in the same tier — Jerry Jeudy (uncertain Browns QB situation), Jordan Addison (possible suspension), Deebo Samuel (weight/age worries), and Chris Olave (concussion concerns) — all carry negative news, creating room for Pearsall to rocket into the sixth round. Scooping him now locks in closing-line value and gives drafters an inexpensive way to bet on Brock Purdy stacks if Aiyuk’s absence drags into the season.

Pat Kerrane pushed back on the Pearsall enthusiasm, calling him a full round overvalued in best-ball rooms. Pearsall’s rookie efficiency—1.31 yards per route run— mirrors the lukewarm debuts of Rome Odunze and JSN but without their elite prospect grades. Kerrane reminded listeners that Kyle Shanahan has a long history of quickly shelving wideouts who fail to pop, so Pearsall could find himself losing snaps when Brandon Aiyuk returns or if fellow slot man Jacob Cowing continues his strong camp. With an ADP in the mid-70s, Kerrane would rather draft proven slot options like Jaden Reed or Khalil Shakir, arguing those players have comparable ceilings without the very real chance of delivering a zero. He labeled Pearsall a better redraft stash—where you can drop him by Week 6—than a best-ball investment you are stuck with all season.

Erik Beimfohr said Ricky Pearsall is still an "awesome click" in the low-70s despite the uncertainty baked into his profile. Beimfohr expects San Francisco’s suddenly shakier defense to push Kyle Shanahan toward a more pass-centric game plan, creating extra volume for Brock Purdy to feed secondary targets. With Brandon Aiyuk’s hamstring and contract situation unresolved and Deebo Samuel showing decline, Pearsall— a 2024 first-rounder who flashed down the stretch after literally being shot in camp— has a clear runway to seize a full-time role. Beimfohr framed the bet as a 60/40 proposition where drafters either get nothing or land a mid-season breakout tied to one of the league’s most efficient quarterbacks. At an ADP two rounds cheaper than last year’s JSN or Jaxon Worthy archetypes, he believes the payoff outweighs the risk in large-field Best Ball Mania tournaments.

Josh Norris said Ricky Pearsall is the 49er wideout he keeps drafting because the rookie should inherit much of Shanahan’s pre-snap motion and jet-sweep usage after finally looking 100 % healthy late last season ("he wasn’t really himself until Week 9 or 10"). Pearsall goes in the same seventh-round pocket as Brandon Ayuk, yet Ayuk enters camp dinged up while Pearsall brings fresh legs and scheme-versatile movement skills the staff already highlighted in spring practices. With San Francisco’s offense projected top-five in scoring and their defense likely to regress, Norris believes Pearsall offers similar weekly ceilings to Ayuk at a fraction of the injury risk, making him a priority pick in that ADP zone.

Mike Wright said Ricky Pearsall is an automatic buy in dynasty because the market has him buried at WR47 despite first-round draft capital and a perfect landing spot. Wright stressed that Kyle Shanahan’s offense has already produced multiple top-12 fantasy wideouts and now loses Deebo Samuel while Brandon Aiyuk nurses an injury, opening immediate targets for Pearsall on a team Vegas pegs for 10.5 wins. He highlighted Pearsall’s underrated rookie year: after missing the first six weeks recovering from a gun-shot wound in a daylight robbery, Pearsall closed the season with 8-141-1 on 10 targets against Detroit and 6-69-1 against Arizona, giving him three top-15 fantasy finishes in the season’s final month. Only 18 other rookie receivers in the past decade posted three games of 15+ points in the second half, and all but Christian Watson and dog-housed Brandon Aiyuk delivered a top-24 season the very next year. Pair that late-season production with elite route running, "unbelievable hands" (Wright joked he’s undefeated in thumb wars), and glowing practice reports from Brock Purdy, and Wright believes Pearsall has an obvious path to WR2 numbers as soon as 2025—far exceeding his current price.

Pat Fantasy Dog Pound argued that Ricky Pearsall’s current pick-80 price tag is egregious. He would rather take a temporarily injured Aiyuk in the 100s than pay a full eighth-round ticket for a slot rookie who could slide to WR3 once Aiyuk returns. Pat also pointed out that late-season weeks 15-17—when Best Ball Mania money is made—will feature a fully healthy 49ers wideout room, capping Pearsall’s upside. Until Pearsall drops two full rounds, Pat is out.

Chris Raybon faded Ricky Pearsall hard, ranking him WR55 versus an Underdog ADP of WR41. Raybon cited a brutal rookie resume—Pearsall’s 14.4% targets-per-route ranked 26th out of 28 first-round receivers in the last five drafts, including a five-week stretch where he caught just two balls on 107 routes. The 49ers then muddied the waters further by re-signing Jauan Jennings (fresh off a late-season mini-breakout) and adding veteran Demarcus Robinson plus two Day-3 rookies. Raybon reminded listeners that Christian McCaffrey routinely soaks up receiver-level volume and George Kittle remains a red-zone staple, leaving Pearsall fighting for scraps even if Brandon Aiyuk opens on PUP. Outside of a meaningless Week-18 spike against Detroit, Raybon saw nothing to justify top-40 optimism and called Pearsall "a classic trap born of one highlight game and first-round bias."

Pat Kerrane explained that Ricky Pearsall is the 49er he is "coldest on" because the sophomore’s ADP around pick 73 assumes a Year-2 breakout that may never come. Pearsall produced only two usable games as a rookie, finishing with a sub-1.4 yards-per-route figure, and now competes with Deebo Samuel, an eventually healthy Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, and trusted chain-mover Jauan Jennings. Kerrane likened the bet to last summer’s Jahan Dotson whiff: drafters are paying a premium for potential while ignoring a realistic scenario where Pearsall slides to fourth or fifth in line and ends up outside the weekly top-50 wide receivers. He would rather draft rookies in the same range who will be force-fed snaps late in the season, labeling Pearsall a "binary bet that could be totally dead" if he fails to consolidate targets early. Unless Pearsall’s price falls multiple rounds, Kerrane is steering clear in Best Ball rooms.