Who Should I Start? Zay Flowers or Ricky Pearsall

Wednesday, May 28, 11:00 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers (knee) was seen taking part in organized team activities on Wednesday. Flowers sprained his right knee in the Week 18 regular-season finale against the Cleveland Browns and was unable to play in either of the team's postseason games. The 24-year-old didn't need surgery in the offseason, though, and should be just fine for training camp this summer and the start of the 2025 regular season this fall. In his second NFL season, Flowers made the Pro Bowl by finishing with 74 catches on 116 targets for 1,059 yards and four touchdowns in 17 regular-season games (15 starts). In a run-first offense, Flowers thrives on efficiency and explosive plays with his elite speed, rather than on volume. With limited targets, Flowers' ceiling is probably as a low-end WR2 if he can find the end zone more often.

Thursday, May 29, 6:04 PM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (hamstring) is dealing with a hamstring injury and likely won't return to practice until training camp at the end of July, according to head coach Kyle Shanahan. It doesn't sound like it's a serious injury for Pearsall, the but Niners won't take any chances with last year's first-rounder after he also dealt with hammy issues going into his rookie season in 2024. The 24-year-old pass-catcher then suffered a gunshot wound to his chest and didn't make his NFL debut until Week 7. He's expected to have a key role in the offense in his sophomore season with Deebo Samuel Sr. no longer in town and Brandon Aiyuk (knee) unlikely to be ready for the start of the season, but Pearsall is going to lose valuable reps this offseason to gain chemistry with quarterback Brock Purdy. Pearsall could still be ready for Week 1, but this news doesn't do anything to dispel the notion that Pearsall is injury-prone.