Ricky Pearsall was watching from the sideline during the San Francisco 49ers' practice on Thursday and it appears that, if he had his way, the Niners' first-round pick would have been on the field despite suffering a gunshot wound last Saturday.
Pearsall was shot during an attempted armed robbery in San Francisco. A 17-year-old has since been charged with attempted murder.
He suffered a 'through and through' wound, with the bullet going through his chest and exiting out of his back. Incredibly, it missed all of his vital organs and did not even touch any bones or any part of his nervous system.
He FaceTimed with his teammates, who were attending a party to mark the start of the regular season, before being released on Sunday . Pearsall was then placed on the non-football injury list , meaning he will miss at least the first four games of the regular season.
Despite the traumatic experience he went through, head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed that Pearsall's mind was quickly back on the 49ers' primetime season opener on Monday.
Asked how important it is that Pearsall does not rush the mental aspect of his recovery from the incident, Shanahan told a press conference: "I think that's big. I mean, especially, I think each day the mental part becomes more a big deal, you know, the adrenaline and just surviving that.
"And, you know, Ricky's saying stuff at first that doesn't matter like 'I still think I could play versus the Jets', those are the things he's talking about. And it's just like, 'dude, what are you talking about?'
"There's other things, but the adrenaline of all that, and then I think each day, like, just actually relive that. And you know what his family had to go through for a couple hours. I mean, just flying out here, not totally knowing what the deal was going to be. I think that stuff for him or anybody, you know, it's when that adrenaline goes away that becomes a much bigger deal. And that's kind of what I mean by everyone kind of respecting that, because we'd all be the same and try not to make them relive it as much as possible. But so really, an unbelievable story."
Unbelievable perhaps doesn't do Pearsall's escape justice, with Shanahan articulating the odds he overcame when asked about the wide receiver's overall state.
"I mean, it's kind of been amazing just watching him," added Shanahan. "Getting to see him Sunday, Monday, for him to be able to walk around and stuff with that happening, and talking to people at the ER, you know, saying out of like 100 people, two people survive that.
"To be able to see him the next day, and just that, he's able to walk, he's coming to meetings. He's doing all that, but, you know, he wants to go a little a while, a week or so, without trying to work up a sweat. And then after that, he'll start his rehab and progress again [to get] back."
Soon after the shooting video emerged if Pearsall walking to his ambulance while applying pressure to the wound. Pearsall might not have as been as calm as that video suggested, but the way he handled a terrifying situation has only strengthened the 49ers' belief in their evaluation of him.
"We've been so impressed with Ricky, with everything he's done prior to this," Shanahan said. "For this to happen, and just kind of to hear what his girlfriend, what his parents went through, even talking to Ricky like when it happens, you know, he doesn't know until he actually gets to the hospital and talks to doctors and stuff that he's going to be all right.
"So for him to have to go through that shock and the, you know, the anxiety and the panic of not knowing whether you're going to live or die, and then just, I saw the video that everyone saw him just walking through but at that time, he has no idea he's going to be all right.
"You know he's as tough a person as I know just going through a situation like that. We always felt this way watching him on the football field and things like that, but kind of to watch how he handled that situation and watch how he's been every day since it's been shows how special a guy he is."
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