The San Francisco 49ers may have settled plenty of the conversation around their offense, but one spot is still very much in play: the No. 2 receiver job behind Mike Evans.
That’s the part of the depth chart that deserves more attention. With Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle back in the mix, plenty of people have already penciled in the rest of the passing game. But the receiver room after Evans is anything but settled, and the assumption that Ricky Pearsall has the job locked down is looking shakier by the day.
Pearsall has the kind of profile teams usually love in a WR2. He was a first-round pick, he’s shown reliable hands, and his route tree is still growing.
The problem is that the production hasn’t matched the pedigree. In two seasons, he has 928 yards across 20 games, and last year he played only nine games while dealing with injury for much of the winter.
He still hasn’t fully established himself as one of Brock Purdy’s trusted targets.
The 49ers clearly know that. They brought in Evans to be the top option, but they also signed Christian Kirk as a built-in fallback if Pearsall doesn’t take the next step. Kirk has more than 5,000 receiving yards over eight seasons, and at 29 he may not have Pearsall’s burst, but he brings the kind of experience and reliability the staff values.
There’s more pressure coming from elsewhere, too. De'Zhaun Stribling, a 2026 second-round pick, is in the conversation as well. He’s bigger and faster than Pearsall and is viewed as a possible breakout candidate in 2026.
And it doesn’t stop there. Jacob Cowing, Demarcus Robinson, and Jordan Watkins are all on the depth chart and could eat into Pearsall’s snaps. Outside of Evans, McCaffrey, and Kittle, nobody is guaranteed anything in this passing game.
So while Pearsall may still have the edge, the No. 2 wideout spot is wide open. If he can’t turn the promise into production for a third straight year, this could be his last real shot in a San Francisco uniform.
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Three 49ers Camp Battles Could Shape Shanahans Season
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The secondary has its own set of questions, and those could be just as revealing. Renardo Green is facing real pressure at cornerback from Jack Jones and rookie Ephysians Prysock, while at safety Malik Mustapha appears set, leaving JiAyir Brown, Marques Sigle and Ashtyn Davis to sort out the other starting role. With so much competition clustered in a few spots, camp will not just determine who starts, but how much flexibility the 49ers have when the season begins. [Read more 🡒]