San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan answered all the questions surrounding wide receiver Ricky Pearsall on Thursday. The rookie from Arizona State was shot in the chest during an armed robbery attempt on him in Union Square on Saturday.
At the time that the incident occurred, Kyle Shanahan was occupied with the team’s annual pre-kickoff celebration, whereas general manager John Lynch rushed to the hospital to check up on Ricky Pearsall. A reporter’s question in Thursday’s press conference that risked undermining Shanahan and portraying him in a negative light was quickly shut down by him.
Sports Illustrated’s Grant Cohn had this question, “When you first got the news about Ricky, and you were waiting to find out the severity, did part of you want to drop everything and rush to the hospital with John and be there with him?” His question essentially pointed out the fact that if the GM of the team could make it there, why couldn’t he?
Yeah, obviously. But I'm in charge of our team too. And I don't do that stuff just so you won't say something negative about me. I try to make the right decision for the people I'm responsible for. I had 100 people about to show up to my house an hour and half from there. I try to do things for the right reason- the people that know me would never question that. I would never do something just to avoid people saying bad things." Kyle Shanahan quickly retorted
If he had canceled at the last moment, it would have reflected poorly on Shanahan and would have been unprofessional on his part.
Ricky Pearsall was back in the gym just 2 days after he was discharged from the hospital
Besides, he knew that John Lynch was heading to check on Ricky Pearsall and would provide him with timely updates on the entire situation. Undoubtedly, he would have wanted to be there too, but at that time, his presence would not have helped Pearsall, as there was nothing Shanahan could do.
The head coach made the smarter decision of hosting the party and reassuring the attendees that the Ricky Pearsall situation was under control.
No one knew the exact story, so I was able to reassure everybody as soon as they got there that he was totally fine and it was a miracle... Kyle Shanahan said
The rookie wideout spoke to the entire team two hours after he was treated and regained consciousness. Ricky Pearsall was released from the hospital on Sunday and is already back on the field practicing.
