Pearsall returns to 49ers, wanted to play vs. Jets after shooting

Pearsall returns to 49ers, wanted to play vs. Jets after shooting originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SANTA CLARA — Although rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall is ineligible to play in the 49ers’ first four games of the regular season, it might be impossible to keep him off the field.

Pearsall, the 49ers’ first-round draft pick, spent the warm-up portion of practice on Thursday near the weight room. He was seen chatting with team personnel, including head strength and conditioning coach Dustin Perry.

At one point, Pearsall appeared to show Perry the range of motion with his right arm. He lifted his elbow to shoulder height.

A short time later, Pearsall grabbed a football and walked onto the field to stand with the team’s wide receivers during their drills. He spun the ball in his hands and tossed it up in the air to stay occupied.

Coach Kyle Shanahan said Pearsall expressed his eagerness to get back on the field shortly after the scary incident Saturday, when he was the victim of an armed robbery attempt.

During a struggle, Pearsall sustained a gunshot wound. The bullet entered his chest area on his right side — two inches below a tattoo of praying hands, Shanahan said. The bullet exited out his back without striking any bones or vital organs.

“He’s as tough a person I know, just going through a situation like that,” Shanahan said. “We always felt this way watching him on the football field and things like that. But to watch how he handled that situation and watch how he’s been every day since, it shows how special of a guy he is.”

Shanahan said he spoke to Pearsall a short time later over FaceTime after he’d been transported to San Francisco General Hospital.

“I still think I can play versus the Jets,” Pearsall told Shanahan.

Added Shanahan, “Those are the things he’s talking about, and it’s just like, ‘Dude, what are you talking about? There are other things (in life).’”

Shanahan said the plan for Pearsall is to take it easy for at least a week to avoid working up a sweat in order to guard against the possibility of an infection.

“After that, we’ll start his rehab and progress to getting back,” Shanahan said.

The 49ers placed Pearsall on the reserve/non-football injury list on Monday. The earliest he could return to the playing field would be for the Oct. 6 game against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi’s Stadium in Week 5.

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