49ers’ Ricky Pearsall to miss at least 4 games after being shot during attempted robbery

(CNN) — The San Francisco 49ers placed rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall on the reserve/non-football injury list on Monday after he was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery over the weekend.

The move means Pearsall, 23, will miss at least the first four games of the 2024 season as he recovers from the gunshot. The Niners are set to play their first game of the season on Monday Night Football against the New York Jets on September 9.

A 17-year-old boy attempted to rob Pearsall at gunpoint as he was walking alone at around 3:30 p.m. PT on Saturday, when an altercation broke out between the two, resulting in both of them suffering injuries, according to the San Francisco Police Department.

Officers rendered aid to Pearsall and the suspect and transported them to a hospital for treatment, the release said.

Police have not announced a possible motive for the shooting but there is no indication Pearsall was targeted because he is a football player, San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said on Saturday.

The chief said it appeared the suspect was acting alone. Only one gun was involved in the shooting and it has been recovered, Scott said.

The 49ers said that Pearsall had been released from hospital on Sunday having previously been in a “serious but stable condition.”

Pearsall’s mother, Erin, wrote on Facebook on Sunday that the bullet entered through her son’s chest and exited out his back, missing vital organs.

The rookie wide receiver was drafted by San Francisco with the 31st pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft earlier this year. Before being drafted, Pearsall played three years at Arizona State and two at Florida during his collegiate career. In his last NCAA campaign, he amassed 965 receiving yards and six touchdowns with the Gators.