Who Should I Start? Ricky Pearsall or Emeka Egbuka

Monday, August 25, 12:12 AM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall and his chemistry with fourth-year quarterback Brock Purdy have been on full display this offseason, in camp, and during their lone preseason drive together. The 24-year-old is one of San Francisco's only healthy wideouts, and he and Purdy have worked hard to develop a connection ahead of the 2025 season. In the lone series the two shared during their victory over the Las Vegas Raiders, Pearsall hauled in 3-of-4 targets for 42 yards and totaled more than half the 49ers' yardage. With conflicting reports around the health of teammate Jauan Jennings (calf) and Brandon Aiyuk (knee) to potentially miss six games of his own, the University of Florida alum is poised to handle a large workload in the early going of the season. He's a fine selection as a high-upside WR3/4 in PPR formats.

Tuesday, September 2, 11:17 AM

An unnamed NFC executive told The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue that Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka is "plug and play" and "will be pro-ready." Egbuka is expected to play a prominent role in Tampa Bay's offense right away, with fellow wide receivers Chris Godwin (ankle) and Jalen McMillan (neck) both set to miss the beginning of the season. Egbuka won a national championship in his final collegiate season at Ohio State, recording 81 receptions for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns in the process. Given his prospect pedigree as a first-round pick and the opportunity for immediate contribution with the Buccaneers, Egbuka has been a deserved riser throughout fantasy draft season. He profiles as a high-upside fantasy WR3 for 2025.