One draft analyst ranked Ricky Pearsall sixth overall thanks to his ability to do this

Reception Perception is a service that grades wide receivers, which is spearheaded by Yahoo Sports’ analyst Matt Harmon and gives data on the percentage of routes run, success rate on routes run, percentage of routes against man and zone, and success rate against all coverages. Harmon has released his college prospects rankings from 2021-2024.

The newest 49ers receiver, Ricky Pearsall, ranks 18th on this list between Zay Flowers of the Baltimore Ravens and new Chargers receiver Ladd McConkey.

Names on the full list include Marvin Harrison Jr, Ja’Marr Chase, Rome Odonze, Chris Olave, Devonta Smith, Garrett Wilson, Malik Nabers, and Jaylen Waddle.

Filtering the list for 2024 only places Pearsall at number six. The five receivers ahead of Pearsall are Harrison Jr, Odunze, Nabers, Jermaine Burton, and Brian Thomas Jr. All but Burton were selected before Pearsall, as was Xavier Worthy (9th on the list).

Let’s compare Burton, Thomas Jr, McConkey, and Pearsall’s success rates against different coverages:

Burton

Man: 50.5% of routes run with a 75.0% success rate

Zone: 49.5 % of routes run with a 78.6% success rate

Press: 11.1% of routes run with a 77.3% success rate

Double: 5.1% of routes run with a 50% success rate

Thomas Jr

Man: 48.9% of routes run with a 70.1% success rate

Zone: 51.1% of routes run with an 80.4% success rate

Press: 16.4% of routes run with a 73.9% success rate

Double: 2.5% of routes run with a 28.6% success rate

Pearsall

Man: 44.1% of routes run with a 75.8% success rate

Zone: 55.9% of routes run with an 82.2% success rate

Press: 11% of routes run with a 67.7% success rate

Double: 5% of routes run with a 57.1% success rate

McConkey

Man: 50.4% of routes run with a 74.6% success rate

Zone: 49.6% of routes run with an 83.3% success rate

Press: 13.5% of routes run with a 44.4% success rate

Double: 5.3% of routes run with a 57.1% success rate

Pearsall’s 67.7% success rate against press is about average, according to the reception perception model. However, Pearsall exceeds Thomas Jr, Burton, and McConkey against man coverage. Against zone coverage, Pearsall ran more of his routes and had a higher success rate than Thomas Jr and Burton. Facing press coverage, Pearsall was third behind Burton and Thomas Jr but holds a wide margin on McConkey. Double coverage won’t lead to much success, but McConkey and Pearsall tied at 57.1%, with Burton right behind with 50% and Thomas Jr well behind at a 28.6% success rate.

For those curious, Xavier Worthy, who the Chiefs traded up to select, finished with substantially worse numbers against all coverages compared to Pearsall.

Worthy

Man: 44.7% of routes run with a 68.4% success rate

Zone: 55.3% of routes run with an 80.7% success rate

Press: 14.1% of routes run with a 59.5% success rate

Double: 4.2% of routes run with a 36.4% success rate

Pearsall holds a lead in success rate against all coverages. For reference, Worthy lined up in the slot 36.1% of the time, and Pearsall lined up 51.4% of the time in the slot.

Time will tell which receiver will have the better career, but this model thinks highly of Pearsall and his fit for the 49ers.