‘You Have To Assume He Doesn’t Want To Play Football Anymore’ — 49ers Insider Wonders if Brandon Aiyuk Is Done With NFL
· Yahoo Sports
Every day, a new voice chimes in on the ongoing standoff between Brandon Aiyuk and the San Francisco 49ers, yet the situation remains stuck in the mud.
Over the last few months, the wide receiver has repeatedly taken aim at the organization and general manager John Lynch on social media. Aiyuk also revealed that he no longer wants any future relationship with the 49ers.
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As the drama continues, 49ers insider Grant Cohn believes the situation has reached an inflection point.
49ers Insider Questions Brandon Aiyuk’s Intentions
Posting on X, Cohn questioned whether Aiyuk even wants to continue playing in the NFL.
“No matter what Brandon Aiyuk says, until he actually hires an agent and files for reinstatement with the league, you have to assume he doesn’t want to play football anymore,” Cohn remarked.
Amid the growing concern, San Francisco has made it clear that its attention remains on the players currently in camp. Speaking during a recent press conference, General Manager Lynch explained Aiyuk’s roster status.
“Brandon is on a ‘left squad’ designation,” Lynch said. “As such, he’s not on our 90-man roster. I’m personally, and we as an organization, are going to focus on the players that are here. So, I don’t have anything to say on that, anything to add on that. We wish him well. We wish his family well.”
When reporter Matt Barrows asked whether the 49ers were keeping Aiyuk away from another contender, particularly Washington, Lynch declined to entertain the idea.
“Matt, I understand you got to do your job. I understand. But as I said at the start, he’s on that list. That means he’s not on our roster. I’m going to focus on the guys that are and stand by what we’ve said already.”
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Clearly, Lynch has no interest in continuing the conversation. Instead, the Niners are looking to move forward while the wide receiver remains on the outside.
Aiyuk and the 49ers’ relationship began falling apart shortly after the wide receiver agreed to a four-year, $120 million extension.
The extension followed the best season of Aiyuk’s career. PFN’s WR Impact Metric ranked him as the NFL’s No. 6 wide receiver after he caught 75 passes on 105 targets for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns. He also recorded a 21.6% target share, making him one of the league’s most productive pass catchers.
But the situation took a hard left after Aiyuk’s injury-shortened 2024 season. That year, he appeared in only seven games before tearing both his ACL and MCL.
Now, injuries are common in the NFL, but the rules require recovering players to stay connected with the team’s medical staff. But Aiyuk allegedly stopped reporting to San Francisco’s facility and missed scheduled rehabilitation sessions, creating another layer of tension.
As a result, the 49ers voided the remaining guaranteed money in his contract last offseason after claiming he defaulted on those obligations. They then placed him on the reserve/left squad list.
Since then, both sides have remained locked in a dispute. Although Aiyuk is still under contract, the situation appears beyond salvage unless and until he files for reinstatement.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.