It might be unfair to judge San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall solely based on his modest statistics this season. Pearsall has caught just 13 passes for 153 yards and found the end zone once through eight games.
However, his journey to the field has been anything but typical. After suffering a gunshot wound to the chest before the start of the season, Pearsall has faced overwhelming challenges. On Wednesday, head coach Kyle Shanahan defended the first-year wideout, emphasizing that other setbacks have hindered his first NFL campaign.
"I think Ricky's doing a hell of a job," Shanahan said. "I know everyone talks about the gunshot wound, but what people don't realize is, I think I said a couple of weeks ago, but he only had three practices before that gunshot wound. He missed all OTAs (organized team activities) and all of training camp, and then to get that gunshot, basically went from Florida to us halfway through the season."
Given these circumstances, Shanahan has been pleased with Pearsall's progress and remains optimistic that he will continue to develop as he gains more experience.
"I thought he did a hell of a job coming back from that, trying to learn and practice as he goes," Shanahan continued. "He's been banged up a little bit, started in Green Bay. I think he's fought through that here the last couple of weeks."
In the 49ers' last two games, Pearsall caught two passes for 21 yards after being held without a reception in the previous three games.
"I thought he did some real good stuff on tape last week," Shanahan said. "He had a couple of big catches. I think he's going in the right direction and hope it keeps improving here these next three games."