The 49ers lose Brandon Aiyuk to a serious knee injury after bringing back Ricky Pearsall

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The emotional lift of Ricky Pearsall's return to the field 50 days after he was shot lasted less than half. Then the San Francisco 49ers had to deal with more bad news at receiver.

Brandon Aiyuk suffered a right knee injury on Sunday 28-18 defeat Coach Kyle Shanahan fears the Kansas City Chiefs are dealing with a season-ending ACL tear.

Shanahan said the team is awaiting confirmation from an MRI scheduled for Monday, but Aiyuk is expected to miss the rest of the season, the latest injury setback against a San Francisco team already headed to the All-Pro. Running back Christian McCaffrey and other key players waived players.

“I know a lot of teams are struggling with this,” Shanahan said of the spate of injuries. “Not every team, but we are struggling hard with it at the moment. Today things have gotten worse. It's difficult.”

Aiyuk was injured late in the first half when he was hit in the knee after a catch in the red zone. He lay there for a few minutes before being carried to the locker room and was quickly eliminated for the rest of the game.

Aiyuk, who signed a four-year, $120 million contract extension in late August after a lengthy contract extension, has 25 catches for 374 yards this season. He was second-team All-Pro last season when he had 1,342 receiving yards.

“Obviously it's sad what BA does for our offense, who he is as a teammate and brother to us,” quarterback Brock Purdy said. “So wish him all the best for the future. That's my type.

San Francisco was already without two of its other top receivers: Jauan Jennings was sidelined with a hip injury that isn't expected to be permanent, and Deebo Samuel dealt with an illness that limited him to four snaps against Kansas City.

That placed more responsibility on Pearsall, who was taken off the non-football injured list on Saturday. Pearsall made his first play on San Francisco's first drive and caught his first career pass late in the second quarter. He finished the game with three catches for 21 yards.

“It would be a little easier for him today,” Shanahan said. “That changed a little bit when Deebo left and it changed a little bit when Aiyuk left. So today he had to do more than we expected and I was proud of him for doing that. It’s great to have him back.”

Pearsall returned to training last Monday for the first time since taking over shot in the chest on August 31 in the Union Square area of ​​San Francisco. However, he was hospitalized overnight Damage avoided all organs and nerves and trained again in the team facility the following week.

“Of course, my first thought throughout the whole incident was whether I would be alive or not,” Pearsall said. “Once I knew I was going to be okay and alive, the next question was whether I would play football again. As soon as I got that answer, this light grew inside me and I was super excited to get back out here.”

Pearsall, drafted in the first round in April, missed most of training camp with hamstring and shoulder injuries but was on track to be ready for the opener before he was shot.

It took weeks before he was healthy enough to play in a game again.

“The biggest hurdle for me was recovering from the wound,” he said. “There was obviously a lot of scar tissue buildup in that area, and since it was in my chest, under my armpit. … I'm just working on it, making sure I get everything under control and get the scar tissue out. And once I started feeling better mobility and pain tolerance, I was on track to return in practice.”

Pearsall proved that on the practice field during the week, but the moment he stepped onto the field for the first time as a professional was the biggest step.

“It meant everything to me,” Pearsall said. “Of course, all the adversity I’ve been through in the last month. It was really good to go out there with my boys again. I think this is a refresher for me at the end of the day. When the incident first occurred, the first thing I thought of was the guys in that locker room, the coaches in the locker room, and the entire staff. They did a really good job making sure I stayed up. It was a great blessing for me today.”

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