The Seattle Seahawks already had one less thing to worry about in their NFC West chase, and now the San Francisco 49ers are dealing with another hit to a receiver room that keeps thinning out.
Ricky Pearsall will miss the 2026 season after deciding to have surgery on the PCL injury that had bothered him since last year. He had played through the issue, but the problem flared up again in training camp, and after several days of evaluating it, the 49ers settled on the season-ending procedure.
For Seattle, that means one more projected obstacle against San Francisco has been removed before the teams even get to the season. Pearsall was supposed to be part of the answer at wide receiver, especially after the 49ers announced the signing of Deebo Samuel just a day earlier. Samuel had spent one season with the Washington Commanders and was expected to essentially fill in for Brandon Aiyuk, who has his own concerns inside and outside football and is unlikely to ever play for the NFC West team again.
The wideout losses have not stopped there. San Francisco also lost Jauan Jennings in free agency, and rookie De'Zhaun Stribling has struggled badly in offseason workouts and training camp. He could still sort things out, but the picture right now points to a receiver group that looks a lot thinner than the 49ers would like.
Pearsall’s absence stings because he showed what he can do when he’s right. He opened 2025 in a big way, including a Week 1 performance against the Seahawks in which he beat cornerback Riq Woolen on a late drive and helped set up the touchdown that decided the game. Woolen has since moved on and signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.
The problem, though, has been availability. Pearsall played in only 11 games in 2024 and nine last season. If this new setback carries through 2026 as expected, he will have missed 31 of a possible 51 games by the end of that year.
For Seattle, the path back into the playoffs and another run at the Super Bowl still runs through San Francisco and the Los Angeles Rams. The ideal version of that chase would feature both sides at full strength. That is not what the Seahawks are getting from the 49ers right now.
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