The standoff between the San Francisco 49ers and Brandon Aiyuk persists as training camp rapidly approaches. Aiyuk has been pushing for a contract extension that would place him among the NFL's highest-paid wide receivers, but the two sides have yet to see eye-to-eye on his potential salary.
Earlier this offseason, 49ers general manager John Lynch expressed optimism about reaching a deal.
"I think we've got a nice track record of extending the players that are important to us, and Brandon's a guy we want to keep around for a long time," Lynch stated in February.
In March, Aiyuk joined "The Nightcap" podcast, saying, "I'm trying to get what I deserve."
He expressed confidence in the negotiation process, adding, "We got professionals working on both sides, so hopefully, we can come to a professional agreement to continue playing professional football."
The NFL Draft came and went, and Aiyuk remained on the 49ers roster, making it clear that the team hoped to secure the player to a long-term deal. Afterward, news remained sparse until Michael Silver of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the 49ers' latest offer to Aiyuk was about $26 million annually, falling short of his perceived market value. Aiyuk is believed to be seeking closer to $30 million annually. Until Silver's report, both sides had kept the details of their negotiations under wraps.
Likely responding to the report, Aiyuk shared a video of a conversation with Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, a former Arizona State teammate, saying, "They said they don't want me back ... I swear."
Explaining that comment on "The Pivot" podcast, Aiyuk said, "[The 49ers] told me that they didn't think that we were on the same page and that they didn't believe that we were going to. And that was about it at that time. But it's part of it. It's part of the contract negotiations, trying to sway stuff in either direction. So whether that's 100% true or not, I guess that's still to find out."
Sharing his thoughts on details of the negotiations being made public, Aiyuk admitted, "It's a little bit frustrating, especially when we're getting down to details like that. We're putting down exact numbers in negotiation, where that's talks between the team and my team, and we're trying to work through a lot of things. So, for actual numbers and actual stuff like that to come out, I felt it was a little bit disrespectful, a little bit unfair to me. But that's part of it. It is what it is. It's a dirty game."
Reaching an agreement will require one or both sides to compromise. The problem for Aiyuk is that the 49ers hold significant leverage. Aiyuk is under contract for the upcoming season due to a team-exercised fifth-year option that will pay him $14.124 million. Additionally, San Francisco can utilize the franchise tag in 2025 and 2026. Under that scenario, Aiyuk would earn an estimated average of approximately $22.9 million over the next three seasons, still less than the 49ers' latest reported offer.
With veterans required to report to training camp on July 23, there is still time to reach a deal. After that, if Aiyuk remains away from the team, he will incur potential fines. He has already accumulated about $100,000 in fines for missing the 49ers' mandatory minicamp last month.
If Aiyuk doesn't show up for training camp, it will put the 49ers in an uncomfortable position. Reporters will undoubtedly continue to ask about the negotiations once they have access to the team, a situation 49ers decision-makers have been able to avoid over the past month.
Aiyuk's absence could also hurt the chemistry between himself and third-year quarterback Brock Purdy, who threw for a single-season franchise record of 4,280 passing yards last season. Aiyuk led the team with 1,342 receiving yards, solidifying his role as the 49ers' top wideout.
In March, discussing the importance of chemistry between Purdy and Aiyuk, head coach Kyle Shanahan said, "That's huge. I mean, it's hard to be successful at quarterback if you don't have real good receivers. So it starts there with Brandon, and I think that's real big for Brock in his future, making sure we got a good group for him going forward."
Last year, the 49ers and Nick Bosa didn't reach a contract agreement until just days before the regular season began. The defensive end later admitted that his 44-day holdout from training camp contributed to his slow start.
"I think I'm trying to work on stuff on the run this year that I wasn't able to do in camp," Bosa acknowledged.
Nick Bosa admits missing training camp has caused him to get out to "a little bit" of a slow start pic.twitter.com/NCFMb0SoM8
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) October 25, 2023
Bosa added that attempting to refine his pass-rush plan during the season, rather than addressing it in training camp, was not ideal.
If Aiyuk doesn't report to training camp, it could put the 49ers in a tough spot, especially considering how Bosa's holdout affected his performance early last season. This might be Aiyuk's final leverage in the negotiations. The question now is, which side will blink first?
