Ricky Pearsall vs Troy Franklin: Who Should You Start?
The gap between Ricky Pearsall and Troy Franklin is smaller than most fantasy managers think. Separated by just 0.7 PPG in 2025, this is one of those wide receiver decisions that comes down to context, not name recognition. Ricky Pearsall averaged 7.8 PPG with the San Francisco 49ers across 9 games, and Troy Franklin posted 8.5 with the Denver Broncos in 17.
When two wide receivers are separated by less than two points per game, the decision shifts to weekly context. Who has the softer defense? Who is trending up over the last month? Which team is projected for more total points? Those are the tiebreakers that actually matter.
Target volume is the story here. Troy Franklin saw 104 targets in 2025, while Ricky Pearsall drew 53. That workload gap usually translates into a higher weekly floor for Troy Franklin, even in weeks where Ricky Pearsall posts the bigger ceiling game. Consistency-minded managers lean toward target share; boom-bust managers chase the upside.
Ricky Pearsall has his bye in Week 9, and Troy Franklin rests in Week 14. Managers rostering both need waiver wire depth at wide receiver for those two weeks, and that is exactly the kind of planning DraftCall's matchup engine surfaces automatically so you are not scrambling on a Sunday morning.
