Fans hail Ricky Pearsall after 49ers rookie claims he wants to talk to and forgive man who shot him in chest
Fans are praising San Francisco 49ers rookie Ricky Pearsall for his attitude toward the person who shot him last summer.
Before starting his first season in the NFL, Pearsall was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery in San Francisco on August 31.
After recovering and completing his rookie campaign, Pearsall admitted he wanted to talk to the person who pulled the trigger.
“I don’t know how he grew up, so I can’t judge him as a man based on one action he took,” Pearsall said this weekend. “No matter how violent the crime was, God forbid he does that to someone else.
“I don’t want that to ever happen, so at the end of the day, if I can forgive him, I have to be able to forgive him for taking that weight off my chest,” he continued.
“At some point I want to talk to the kid and make sure that if I can create an impact on him in any way, I think that would be really big. I would certainly be open to that.’
Ricky Pearsall has been praised for saying he wants to forgive the boy who shot him last summer
KNBR posted a video of Pearsall’s comments as fans took to social media to praise the 24-year-old.
One user wrote: ‘Damn. respect for Ricky for being the bigger person.”
A second claimed he had been raised well, while a third called Pearsall a ‘wise young man’.
“Damn Ricky, hats off to you young man. Respect,” a fourth added.
Fortunately, Pearsall recovered quickly after the bullet missed his vital organs, despite landing on his back. The rookie was seen in practice just days after the incident.
The wide receiver appeared in 11 games and tallied 31 receptions for 400 yards and three touchdowns. The 49ers were dethroned from their NFC Championship with a 6–11 record to end the season.