ESPN on Ricky Pearsall: ‘That was probably the largest non-QB reach in the first round’

ESPN’s Seth Walder listed the biggest move, plus one move he liked and disliked for the San Francisco 49ers this offseason

Wide receiver has been the main character this offseason for the San Francisco 49ers. The team has been rumored to trade a former All-Pro, is linked to signing another to a substantial extension, and drafted two in the 2024 NFL Draft. Oh, and one wideout agreed to a new contract.

ESPN’s Seth Walder went through each team to give his thoughts on their biggest move and the move he liked and disliked the most from the offseason:

Biggest move: Not trading any of their wide receivers

Move I liked: Not trading WR Brandon Aiyuk

Move I disliked: Reaching for WR Ricky Pearsall in the first round

The 49ers enter 2024 with many of the same players who got them to Super Bowl LVIII, other than some defensive line turnover.

The team cut defensive tackle Arik Armstead and lost defensive tackles Sebastian Joseph-Day and Javon Kinlaw along with defensive ends Randy Gregory, Clelin Ferrell and Chase Young in free agency and brought in edge Leonard Floyd, defensive tackle Maliek Collins (via trade), defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos and defensive tackle Jordan Elliott. Collins is the player I like the most from that group — a longtime underrated pass-rushing threat who ranked 12th in pass rush win rate at defensive tackle (13%) in 2023 and accumulated 5.0 sacks. San Francisco also added De’Vondre Campbell at linebacker, a potentially important signing after Dre Greenlaw tore his left Achilles in the Super Bowl.

Perhaps the most notable move of the 49ers’ offseason is one they didn’t make — at least not yet: trading Aiyuk or fellow receiver Deebo Samuel. Aiyuk is worth keeping and paying, as he was the top overall receiver in ESPN’s receiver tracking metrics last season and is just 26 years old. On the other hand, Samuel is a great YAC receiver but I worry how his style of play will age. At 28, he is two years older than Aiyuk. If the 49ers decide they are overinvested at wideout and want to save money, Samuel is the player to move.

Part of the reason they are so invested is because the team also spent its first-round pick on Pearsall. Though a fine prospect, that was probably the largest non-QB reach on the first round based on expectations of where players would be drafted.

As far as the defensive line goes, I believe Gross-Matos will give the Niners the best bang for their buck as far as offseason investments go. His versatility should allow him to play more, and the Niners have always maximized pass rushers they bring in with the flexibility to win inside and out.

The plan for Pearsall should be the story here. He walks into a situation where he won’t be in the top four for weapons on a team. How often does that happen for a first-round wide receiver? Some will feel like the 49ers need to see what they have in the Day 1 pick, but will Pearsall show he’s ready to make an impact and earn playing time over the wideouts ahead of him?

This assumes Brandon Aiyuk will be in the fold come Week 1. If he’s not, that puts immense pressure on Pearsall to perform right away, which isn’t something the 49ers likely planned for.

It’s safe to say we can expect Pearsall to play multiple positions, likely around 30-40 percent of the snaps, while Kyle Shanahan figures out what he can do at the NFL level. Unfortunately, he’ll be viewed as a reach/bust by the outside world if the production isn’t there in Year 1.