Since the San Francisco 49ers couldn’t agree on a long-term contract with Brandon Aiyuk, they’ve allowed him to speak with other teams about a potential trade.
The key issue now is whether Aiyuk can find a team that will offer him the big contract he wants and also provide the 49ers with enough compensation to make a trade worthwhile.
If this doesn’t work out, Aiyuk might remain with the 49ers, either with a new deal or by playing under the fifth-year option.
For the moment, there have been no changes despite ongoing speculation about Aiyuk’s situation.
“I’m not going into details about offers, contracts, trades, or anything like that. But I can tell you that nothing has changed,” coach Kyle Shanahan said on Tuesday. “There were a lot of rumors yesterday, but from where we stand with Brandon, nothing has changed.”
NBC Sports Bay Area reported on Monday night that the 49ers have discussed possible trades with Cleveland and New England, contingent on Aiyuk agreeing to a long-term deal with those teams.
Aiyuk reportedly prefers a deal with Pittsburgh, but the Steelers would need to meet the 49ers’ asking price for one of their top players. Shanahan said he doesn’t expect a quick resolution.
“You always want it to be resolved quickly. Badly,” he said. “But these things take time. Every day I hope it gets resolved, but I have no timetable on it. It didn’t surprise me coming into this. … Hopefully, it will get resolved sooner rather than later.”
Aiyuk skipped the entire offseason program, including a mandatory minicamp in June, as he waited for a new extension to replace the fifth-year option on his rookie deal.
He reported to training camp in late July after requesting a trade but has refused to practice. He is attending team meetings and is not being fined.
Aiyuk was set to play under a fifth-year option worth around $14.1 million this season but wanted San Francisco to offer him a long-term contract like other receivers have received this offseason. Ten receivers, before Aiyuk, had signed contracts of at least $70 million, with Justin Jefferson’s four-year, $140 million extension with Minnesota setting the highest figure.
Aiyuk was an important part of San Francisco’s offense last season, connecting well with quarterback Brock Purdy. He had 75 catches and a career-high 1,375 yards, along with seven touchdowns, earning second-team All-Pro honors.
If Aiyuk is not available, it would be challenging for San Francisco, especially if they aim to reach and win the Super Bowl this season.
“Brandon’s a great player,” Shanahan said. “It’s really tough to be better when you lose a great player. So we have to consider all options and understand the situation. That does take time. Hopefully, it will all work out best for him and for us in the end.”
The 49ers have managed to keep their key draft picks since Shanahan and general manager John Lynch took over in 2017. They’ve given big contracts in the past four years to George Kittle, Fred Warner, Deebo Samuel, and Nick Bosa.
Negotiations weren’t easy, with Warner’s talks extending into training camp, Samuel missing a few practices in 2022, and Bosa signing less than a week before the season opener last year.
Bosa described the negotiation process as “brutal” and had doubts it would result in a new contract at times last summer.
