Who Should I Start? Brandon Aiyuk or Ricky Pearsall

Wednesday, November 5, 6:04 PM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said on Wednesday that he's "pretty confident" that wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) will play at some point this season, according to David Lombardi of The San Francisco Standard. However, the 49ers are still waiting for Aiyuk to "hit certain markers" on GPS speed measurements before opening his 21-day practice window. Once Aiyuk returns to practice, the team will have 21 days to officially activate him from the Physically Unable to Perform list. Despite the optimism, reports on Monday suggested that the 27-year-old former first-rounder wasn't close to a return to practice, so fantasy managers who have been stashing Aiyuk all year shouldn't get their hopes up. Aiyuk suffered a torn ACL and MCL in Week 7 of last year and probably won't be back in games for the 49ers until December.

Friday, November 7, 7:19 PM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee) has been running, but he hasn't quite been cleared to make his return after spraining his PCL in the Week 4 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, according to Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group. "He can run and hit certain speeds. But he hasn't been able to hit his normal speeds that would allow him to come back. We're waiting until he hits his markers," head coach Kyle Shanahan said. Pearsall was officially ruled out for Week 10 this Sunday against the division-rival Los Angeles Rams, his sixth straight absence. The 25-year-old was a popular breakout candidate during training camp and the preseason this year, with Brandon Aiyuk (knee) recovering from a torn ACL and MCL, but injury issues of his own have limited him to just four games, and he's running out of time to make an impact for his fantasy managers. Pearsall must get back on the practice field next week to have a chance at playing in Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals.