49ers WR Ricky Pearsall to miss 2026 season with knee injury

It’s been a tough start to Ricky Pearsall’s NFL career.

The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver, who has yet to play a full season, has been placed on the injured reserve and will miss the entirety of the 2026 campaign after undergoing surgery on a nagging PCL injury, general manager John Lynch announced Saturday.

Pearsall’s injury dates back to last season when he missed eight games with a PCL issue. He was sidelined earlier this week at training camp due to swelling in his right knee.

According to the 49ers, Pearsall is expected to make a full recovery for the 2027 season.

Pearsall has flashed when he is healthy, but has struggled to stay on the field since being drafted in the first round in 2024. He missed most of training camp as a rookie with a shoulder injury and then was shot in a robbery attempt just before the start of that season. Pearsall returned to make 31 catches for 400 yards and three TDs in 11 games.

Pearsall was slowed early last summer by a hamstring injury, but got off to a fast start to the season with 20 catches for 327 yards in his first four games before going down with the knee injury in Week 4. He managed to return in Week 11 and had 16 more catches for 201 yards.

Overall, Pearsall has 67 catches for 928 yards and three TDs in 20 games over two seasons.

As a way to supplant the 49ers’ receiving core, they reunited with former wideout Deebo Samuel on a one-year, $7 million deal, announced Saturday.