Ricky Pearsall will miss the entire 2026 season after the San Francisco 49ers abandoned their attempt to manage his persistent knee problem without surgery.

President of football operations and general manager John Lynch confirmed on Saturday that Pearsall will undergo an operation to repair the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. San Francisco subsequently placed the receiver on injured reserve, ending his season before the team had completed its first week of training camp.

“He’s gutted. We’re gutted,” Lynch told reporters. “He’s a really good football player, a really important member of our team.”

Pearsall originally suffered the injury during San Francisco’s Week 4 game against Jacksonville last September. The 49ers hoped rest and rehabilitation would allow the ligament to heal, but pain and swelling returned after Pearsall attempted to practise at the beginning of camp. Further medical evaluation led the team and player to choose surgery, with his recovery expected to take between six and 12 months. The longer end of that estimate could affect Pearsall’s preparation for 2027 as well as removing him from the coming campaign.

The setback adds another difficult chapter to an NFL career repeatedly interrupted by circumstances beyond ordinary form or selection. Pearsall missed the beginning of his rookie season after being shot in the chest during an attempted robbery in San Francisco in August 2024. Hamstring, knee and ankle problems then disrupted his second year.

The 2024 first-round selection appeared in only 20 games across his first two seasons, recording 67 receptions for 928 yards and three touchdowns, but had appeared ready to establish himself before the PCL injury last season, opening the campaign with successive 100-yard performances. He did not record another 100-yard game after hurting the knee and was limited to nine regular season appearances. The hope that a full offseason might restore that early momentum disappeared when the joint reacted to his return to football activity.

Pearsall’s absence now gives greater context to San Francisco’s reunion with Deebo Samuel. The 49ers had been discussing a return with Samuel for several weeks, meaning the agreement was not conceived solely in response to Pearsall’s latest setback, but uncertainty surrounding the younger receiver helped accelerate those talks.

Samuel has since signed a one-year contract reportedly worth $7m after spending last season with Washington. He caught 72 passes for 727 yards and five touchdowns during his only campaign with the Commanders, having previously accumulated 4,792 receiving yards and 22 touchdowns across six seasons with San Francisco. The veteran returns to an extensively remodelled receiver room. Six-time Pro Bowler Mike Evans arrived from Tampa Bay during free agency, Christian Kirk was also added and De’Zhaun Stribling joined the team as a second-round draft choice.

San Francisco nevertheless expected Pearsall to supply an important combination of speed and route-running within that group. His loss makes Samuel more than familiar depth and places additional responsibility on Stribling to contribute immediately. It also continues a demanding opening to camp for a 49ers team already managing injuries across its defensive line and preparing without Kyle Shanahan in his usual full-time role while the head coach recovers from July’s car accident.