San Francisco’s 40-34 home loss Monday night capped a basement season in the NFC West, but a breakout game from rookie Ricky Pearsall was the bright spot in its 10th loss of the season.

Pearsall managed 141 yards and a touchdown on eight catches. It was the most receiving yards by a 49ers rookie since Jerry Rice (241) in Week 14, 1985 – also on a Monday night.

“It felt good, but that’s what I’m supposed to do,” Pearsall said of his performance, according to the official transcript. “That’s what they brought me here to do, so that’s what I’m going to continue to do. And for me, like I said, it’s no surprise. I have all the confidence in the world in me.”

Pearsall nearly doubled his career yardage total in one night. He entered Monday with 17 catches for 190 yards and a TD in nine games this season.

The newcomer reiterated that although he performed as expected on Monday, he would have preferred a win.

“It felt good to go out and make some plays, but as a competitor I obviously want to go out and get a win, so it wasn’t as fun as I thought it would be,” he said.

Pearsall missed the first six games of the season after suffering a gunshot wound to the chest that missed all vital organs. His game-changing performance in prime time was what the Niners had in mind when they drafted him as a first-round pick in the spring.

“How many yards did he have? 140? Phew, that’s great,” tight end George Kittle said of the rookie. “These are the plays I always expected him to play just from watching him in practice and in OTAs. He covered more than 100 yards every day. Just mastering this game will boost his confidence tremendously. It’s hard. “Going out there and not getting a lot of catches and not opening often. Sometimes the ball and the game just don’t go your way, so you go out there and pile up a ton of catches and run efficiently and run downhill and do what we needed him to do, that will be a huge boost to his confidence.

Pearsall showed all his skills on Monday evening. He fired the Lions’ corners off the line, won at the top of the route, showed high speed, made acrobatic catches and showed good footwork on the sideline. His ability to stretch defenses vertically adds another element to the Niners’ offense. He caught five of seven downfield targets (more than 10 air yards) for 122 yards, the third-most downfield receiving yards in a game by a 49ers player this season, according to Next Gen Stats.

“He had better stats tonight, so that’s what it looks like for the receivers,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “When the ball came his way, he did a good job and had some good catches and some big plays. It doesn’t always work that way with wideouts, but when he got his way, he did a good job breaking man coverage well and good. “I caught everything really well too.

After a lost game in a lost season, the hope is that young players can show growth looking ahead to next year. Pearsall provided that silver lining Monday night. If he continues to improve in the offseason, Brandon Aiyuk returns fully healthy, Deebo Samuel returns to form after an offseason, and Jauan Jennings continues to improve, the Niners have the makings of a dangerous receiver room in 2025.