49ers' Ricky Pearsall Out for 2026 Season After Reaggravated PCL Injury

Ricky Pearsall's 2026 season is done before training camp even wrapped.

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch announced Saturday that Pearsall will be placed on season-ending injured reserve and undergo surgery to repair his posterior cruciate ligament, according to Matt Barrows of The Athletic. By rule, that means Pearsall cannot return to the 49ers roster at any point in 2026.

The injury isn't new. Pearsall has been dealing with a lingering PCL problem dating back to 2025, and it flared up again after just two practices at training camp, forcing the team to shut him down with swelling in the knee.

A Rookie Season Derailed From the Start

Pearsall was the 49ers' first-round pick in 2024, but his career got off to a brutal start before he ever played a down. He was shot during an attempted robbery over Labor Day weekend that year, an incident that delayed his NFL debut.

He still managed to appear in 11 games as a rookie, catching 31 passes for 400 yards and three touchdowns.

2025: Flashes, Then Setbacks

Pearsall looked like he was ready to become San Francisco's No. 1 receiver last season. He opened 2025 with 20 catches for 327 yards through his first four games before a knee injury sidelined him for the next six.

When he came back, he wasn't the same player, managing just five catches for 20 yards over three games. Then he showed signs of turning it around with six catches for 96 yards against the Tennessee Titans, only to reaggravate the same knee injury.

He went on to miss two of the final three regular-season games and the playoff opener, then was largely invisible in San Francisco's divisional-round playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

For his career, Pearsall has 67 catches for 928 yards and three touchdowns across 20 games over two seasons. NBC Sports notes he started all nine games he appeared in last year, but the injury history has clearly caught up with him.

Contract Implications

Fox News reported that Pearsall's inconsistent availability makes it unlikely the 49ers will pick up his fifth-year option for 2028 next spring. That decision doesn't have to be made immediately, but a receiver who has now missed significant chunks of two straight seasons with the same knee isn't in a strong position to command that guarantee.

San Francisco's Response

The 49ers didn't wait around. On Thursday, before Pearsall's surgery was even announced, San Francisco brought back veteran receiver Deebo Samuel on a one-year deal worth up to $7 million, according to NBC Sports. Samuel spent the 2025 season in Washington after being traded away, and now he's back in the building he made his name in.

San Francisco also added Mike Evans in March after the veteran spent 12 seasons in Tampa Bay. NBC Sports reported the team may still need to add another receiver or two to round out the room behind Evans and Samuel, given Pearsall's absence and the uncertainty at the position.

What's Left Unresolved

Pearsall's surgery is aimed at getting him healthy for 2027, according to NBC Sports, but there's no guarantee a receiver with this injury history bounces back at full speed. The 49ers now have to build a passing game around Evans and Samuel for the entire 2026 season without their former first-round pick, and Lynch will have to decide by next spring whether Pearsall's fifth-year option is even worth exercising given two years of the same knee giving out on him.