The San Francisco 49ers may be preparing for life without Ricky Pearsall in 2026.
After missing practice with renewed swelling in the same right knee that caused him significant problems during the 2025 season, Pearsall’s outlook has become increasingly concerning. NBC Sports Bay Area insider Matt Maiocco reported that it is “reasonable” for the 49ers to plan as though Pearsall will not contribute this season, with surgery remaining a possibility if his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) fails to respond to treatment.
The report represents a dramatic shift for a player who entered training camp expected to take on a much larger offensive role.
Latest Update on Pearsall’s Status
Pearsall initially suffered the PCL injury during the 2025 season and the expectation was that a full offseason would allow it to heal without surgery. Instead, the knee began swelling again early in training camp, forcing the 49ers to reevaluate his recovery plan.
According to multiple reports, the organization is now weighing surgical intervention, which could sideline Pearsall for the entire 2026 campaign. While no final decision has been announced, the team’s recent move to reunite with Deebo Samuel underscores the growing uncertainty surrounding Pearsall’s availability.
For now, Pearsall remains sidelined as the 49ers continue gathering medical opinions.
Fantasy Football Impact
This is massive news, as the 49ers already responded by bringing in former wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
Samuel was added on a one-year deal, and he’ll team up with Mike Evans and rookie second-round pick De’Zhaun Stribling to round out San Francisco’s receiving corps.
Samuel’s experience in the 49ers offense gives him a chance to be a solid contributor, but the focus should still be on Evans and Stribling. I personally like Stribling the most due to low cost in all formats, but any pieces to a Kyle Shanahan-led system are worth having.
As for Pearsall, his 2026 season appears to be trending in a very bad direction. He’s not worth targeting in redraft leagues at this point, while he’s a major sell candidate in dynasty formats.
Noah Simpson is a New England-based DFS writer who has spent the better part of a decade obsessing over MLB DFS. He got his start playing DFS recreationally before realizing he was spending more time building spreadsheets than actually watching games, and decided to make it official. At DFSBuild, Noah covers MLB DFS strategy with a focus on finding edges that casual players overlook. When he’s not staring at Statcast data, he’s somewhere on a hiking trail in Maine with his two dogs, Sandboy and Johnner, who are undefeated at ignoring his lineup advice, because they are dogs. They don’t have the cognitive or motor skills required to operate a computer, let alone process complex theories and information.
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