49ers' first-round pick Ricky Pearsall is a perfect fit for the present and the future of their offense
The San Francisco 49ers' selection of Florida wide receiver Ricky Pearsall came as a surprise to many, and only served add fuel to the speculation that they were poised to trade one of Brandon Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel. But the reality is that, once the opening night of the 2024 NFL draft came to a […]
The San Francisco 49ers' selection of Florida wide receiver Ricky Pearsall came as a surprise to many, and only served add fuel to the speculation that they were poised to trade one of Brandon Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel.
But the reality is that, once the opening night of the 2024 NFL draft came to a close, the chances of an Aiyuk trade became extremely slim. With talks about a Samuel trade coming to nothing, the 49ers are set to have both their All-Pro wideouts on the receiving depth chart for at least one more season.
The Niners hanging on to the top two receivers in the draft may lead some to question where their new first-round pick fits in. However, when you examine his skill set and his potential role, it becomes very easy to answer that question.
The tape tells the full story
Pearsall did not deliver standout production in college. The 965 yards he put up in his final season with Florida marked a career-high, and he never had more than six total touchdowns in a single season.
Yet watch Pearsall's tape and you see an extremely well-refined receiver who should slot seamlessly into Kyle Shanahan's offense.
Pearsall is a detailed route-runner who has a varied range of creative releases, marrying his footwork with clever hand usage that helps him defeat physical coverage.
The Arizona State transfer does an excellent job of implementing his change of direction and stop-start quickness into his routes. While Pearsall doesn't have elite top-end speed, he runs his routes with great initial burst to allow him to quickly stack defenders and is explosive out of his breaks, his fluidity in changing direction a key factor in his success in consistently creating separation.
But with Pearsall, the devil (for defenders) is in that aforementioned detail. He uses headfakes to consistently impressive effect and excels at defeating coverage by varying his route speeds.
His prowess as a route-runner is reflected in the numbers. Pearsall, per Reception Perception, had a 75.8 percent success rate against man coverage, which was second best among the prospects charted. Per Pro Football Focus, he was 12th among FBS receviers in the 2024 class with at least 50 zone targets with 2.54 yards per route run versus zone.
Simply put, Pearsall is a receiver who knows how to use his physical gifts and how to manipulate defenders to get open consistently and quickly. For a quarterback in Brock Purdy who was too often left scrambling from pressure as the 49ers' Super Bowl title dreams came to a heartbreaking end at the final hurdle, Pearsall's ability to beat coverage in a hurry should make him a hugely significant asset.
And his selection figures to help the 49ers evolve their dropback passing game.
Turning it up to 11
The 49ers' offense is known as one that thrives in large part because of its versatility. Pearsall, who can operate inside and out and was frequently sent in motion in the backfield at Florida, adds to that.
But he also increases the menu in terms of the 49ers' formational flexibility. The Niners have found huge success in recent seasons with their ability to get five dynamic playmakers in the formation from 21 personnel because of the receiving skills of running back Christian McCaffrey, fullback Kyle Juszczyk and tight end Christian McCaffrey.
Yet the Niners' offense has actually been significantly more efficient out of 11 personnel. Last season, San Francisco finished second in total Expected Points Added (36.33) and tied second in positive play rate (47.3%) throwing the ball out of 11. While the Niners had a positive play rate of 58.2% out of 21, their total EPA of 21.13 points to them being much less explosive out of that heavier personnel grouping.
Still, there is room for the 49ers to be more explosive out of 11, with their EPA from that package nearly 33 points behind that of the Dallas Cowboys (69.14).
Shanahan won't care about the gap to a team they have routinely beaten in recent years. However, Pearsall, with his success in creating separation and in racking up yards after the catch has — along with fourth-round speedster Jacob Cowing — the talent to help the Niners bridge it. Among FBS receivers in the 2024 draft with at least 20 targets of 20 yards or more, Pearsall ranked 14th with 17.1 yards per route run on deep balls.
While the Super Bowl showed third-down receiving specialist Jauan Jennings to be a bigger playmaking threat than many thought, Pearsall gives the Niners the chance to become more regularly reliant on and more dynamic out of the personnel grouping du jour in the NFL lined up in the formation with Samuel and Aiyuk.
With Pearsall regularly producing run blocking effort that suggests they would not be giving away much of an advantage in that department with him on the field in 11, it's little wonder Shanahan was smitten.
Rather than providing Purdy with better protection against the threats from opposing pass rushes, it is a pick that offers the quarterback a more expansive buffet of options to exploit their aggression, and the spread was already pretty extensive to begin with.
Pearsall was not the answer on which most expected San Francisco to settle in the draft after losing Super Bowl 58.
A selection of an offensive tackle was widely anticipated to be the presented solution to the problems that ailed them against Kansas City, but the pick of Pearsall is a much more compelling reply, and it’s one that fits what the 49ers offense is now and where it might well be going in 2024 and beyond.
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