Brandon Aiyuk has established himself as one of the premier wide receivers in the NFL, making it all the more disappointing to discover that the San Francisco 49ers playmaker was overlooked in this year's Pro Bowl selections.
Aiyuk addressed reporters after the team's first practice of the week and openly shared his feelings when asked about the Pro Bowl snub.
"Yeah, it was [disappointing]," Aiyuk said. "It was tough at first, but we'll see. Probably pretty much every one of those guys, at one point, they have to come through San Francisco, so it's all good."
Despite the disappointment, Aiyuk takes pride in the season he delivered, regardless of whether he earned proper recognition for it.
"I know what I did this season," Aiyuk stated. "Everybody, we all play this game for—we want something to show for it. We want to get some accolades, get something to show for the work that we put in. But at the end of the day, I looked at this season, even though it's nowhere close to being done, the regular season, and what I went out to do. I would say I got to do that, so it's all good."
Aiyuk finished the season with a career-high 1,342 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 75 receptions, positioning himself for a potentially significant contract extension in the offseason. However, Aiyuk acknowledged that he has yet to discuss that extensively with his agent.
When asked to analyze personal areas of growth this season, Aiyuk said, "I think, just through the years, you get tested with certain different things, whether that's at home, here on the football field, in the building, wherever it may be. I think just getting used to things happening and being able to kind of continue to move forward and just maneuver through different situations."
With the top seed and home-field advantage secured throughout the NFC playoffs, the 49ers wait to learn which team they will face first. San Francisco is set to host the weakest-seeded winner from Wild Card weekend at Levi's Stadium during the weekend of January 20.
