The San Francisco 49ers selected Florida Gators wide receiver Ricky Pearsall with the 31st overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The selection was not given a very good grade by Ian Valentino of The 33rd Team and was an interesting selection given the trade rumors surrounding both Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk.
For months leading up to the draft, there was speculation that the 49ers may look to trade one or both of their Pro Bowl wide receivers. Samuel has a $28.6 million cap hit in 2024 while San Francisco only has $6.2 million in salary cap space. Many assumed that he would be moved in an effort to save cap space.
As for Aiyuk, there have been rumors about his dissatisfaction with contract negotiations for weeks. After he unfollowed the 49ers on social media, there were rumors that he had requested a trade. In response to these rumors, Aiyuk’s agent said that those spreading it “need better sources,” indicating that Aiyuk had not, in fact, requested a trade.
While both Samuel’s and Aiyuk’s long-term futures with San Francisco are up for debate, the team decided that they would not risk lacking talented pass catchers by letting one they felt could help them team pass them by in the draft.
San Francisco 49ers Wide Receiver Brandon Aiyuk Reacts to Selection of Ricky Pearsall in the 2024 NFL Draft
While many believed that the 49ers trading one or both of their Pro Bowl wide receivers was inevitable, it now appears that they are going to try and make it work with both of them for at least one more season. Having Pearsall spend his rookie season learning from two Pro Bowlers at his position certainly cannot be a bad thing.
What is more, Aiyuk himself was a big fan of the pick, as was revealed by ESPN’s Adam Schefter on X (formerly Twitter):
49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk texted GM John Lynch and HC Kyle Shanahan moments after they selected his former Arizona State teammate Ricky Pearsall with their first-round pick Thursday night. The message, per Shanahan: “Fire Pick, can’t lie.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 26, 2024
As Schefter notes, Aiyuk and Pearsall were teammates at Arizona State. They played together in 2019, which was Aiyuk’s final year in college and Pearsall’s first. Aiyuk left school early to enter the NFL Draft.
How Will Ricky Pearsall Fit Into the San Francisco 49ers Offense?
Unlike many of the other rookie wide receivers taken before him, like Marvin Harrison Jr. by the Arizona Cardinals, Pearsall will not be expected to carry a huge load on offense right away. This is the benefit of not only having two Pro Bowl veterans at his position already in place, but also All Pro tight end George Kittle.
If one considers Samuel, Aiyuk, and Kittle to be Brock Purdy’s top three passing options, it would mean that Pearsall will come in as the fourth option at best, and this does not even take into account passing plays scripted for All Pro running back Christian McCaffrey.
In his first year, fans should not expect Pearsall to be on the field as much as other first round wide receivers who are going to be asked to be passing targets right away. Rather, Pearsall will be allowed to find his footing in the NFL slowly and could emerge as a top wide receiver in a year or two when Samuel and Aiyuk are no longer on the team.
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