Brandon Aiyuk's 49ers Tenure is Over
It has been a long and tumultuous ride for Brandon Aiyuk and the San Francisco 49ers, but it's all but assuredly over now. The 49ers wide receiver did not play at all this year while the team battled injuries en route to a 12-win season and a playoff win.
Whenever Aiyuk is no longer on the roster, it will put an end to one of the most unique team-player conflicts in recent NFL history. Moving on from him will be difficult, but the 9ers seem totally ready to officially pull the plug.
49ers ready to move on from Brandon Aiyuk
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk's next snap will be on a different team. Don't take my word for it, though. Just listen to what 49ers GM John Lynch had to say after their season ended in the divisional round.
"I think it's safe to say that he's played his last snap with the Niners," Lynch said via ESPN. "It's unfortunate. A situation that just went awry. And I will look long and hard at what could have been done differently, but sometimes it just doesn't work out. And I think that this was a case where that happened."
Lynch also revealed that something, whether a release or a trade, will happen "in due time." It is much more likely that Aiyuk is cut, because there's not going to be much demand for an angry wide receiver who's hurt and expensive that is on his way out one way or another.
The 49ers and Aiyuk were involved in a lengthy contract holdout in summer 2024, and it ended with an extension. Then, the wide receiver showed up to practice wearing a pair of pants his entire team was not wearing.
Then, he struggled on the field and got hurt. He tore basically everything in his knee, but he did that after averaging less than 60 yards per game. Aiyuk reportedly skipped several mandatory rehab appointments last offseason, too. The 49ers then voided his 2026 guarantees, and that only enhanced the disconnect.
Kyle Shanahan chimes in
Around that time is when things got really bad. Kyle Shanahan said he'd never in his lifetime of coaching seen a player get guarantees voided. That's also when Aiyuk basically stopped communicating with anyone.
"I'd say it officially stopped for me when the last time I tried to get ahold of him and couldn't and then tried a couple more times and still couldn't," Shanahan said Wednesday. "And then that matched everyone else that was trying to get ahold of him to come in. And eventually there's not much of an explanation because it's really hard for us and anyone else to understand... It's unfortunate and it's confusing because it's confusing for all of us, but it eventually becomes 'it is what it is.'"
Lynch said he wishes he knew why Aiyuk ghosted the team. Whichever team signs him next will probably do so with a ton of contract incentives and be very wary of their new player's history. He's not exactly a happy-go-lucky player.
"You try as hard as you can to fix something that you don't understand. It's not like we understand it very well still," Shanahan continued. "Eventually, you understand that it's not going to change and you got to move on with your football team."
The 49ers did move on, and they won 12 games and went to the NFC's Divisional Round. Some would argue that Shanahan's work this year, without Aiyuk and with so many other key contributors going down for most or all of the season, is the most impressive job in the NFL. He's not likely to win Coach of the Year, but still.
