The San Francisco 49ers made headlines over the weekend by agreeing to trade wide receiver Deebo Samuel to the Washington Commanders. While the move results in a significant dead cap hit, it allows the team to move on from an expensive and seemingly declining player.
And the 49ers may not be done with their offseason purge.
During Tuesday's appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, ESPN insider Adam Schefter suggested that San Francisco could be open to parting ways with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
The 49ers have benefited from significant salary cap flexibility while quarterback Brock Purdy played on his rookie contract. However, that advantage is coming to an end. With Purdy now eligible for an extension, he's expected to become one of the NFL's highest-paid players, forcing the team to make tough financial decisions.
"I think that the 49ers, in their particular financial situation, are open to listening on just about anybody," Schefter said. "And so, if there's a team out there that is willing to take on the Brandon Aiyuk contract, with him coming off the torn ACL, I'm sure they would listen, absolutely."
"With the financial situation that the 49ers are in they're open to listening on just about anybody..
If there's a team out there that is willing to take on the Brandon Aiyuk contract I'm sure they would listen" ~ @AdamSchefter #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/nBHyfneg5l
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 4, 2025
However, Schefter acknowledged that Aiyuk's injury and contract could make a trade extremely challenging.
"That's not a simple thing to do," Schefter said. "Look, if there's no knee injury, it's a simple deal. But because there's a knee injury, because he may miss the first half of next season, and there are questions about when he'll get back next year, there are a whole host of pending issues."
At the NFL Scouting Combine, general manager John Lynch didn't shut down the idea of trading Aiyuk when asked about the report that teams had inquired about the injured receiver.
"Yeah, that typically happens with really good players," Lynch said. "I remember, I think two years ago, having similar conversations. You get calls, and you always listen to calls."
Lynch also emphasized that teams must eventually reset their roster and can't continue handing out massive contracts. The 49ers may be in such a situation this year.
"You can't just keep pressing the pedal," Lynch said. "And I think there's some good that can come out of that. We need to get younger."
With Purdy's looming extension and other salary cap constraints, Schefter believes the 49ers will have to make difficult roster decisions if they want to continue adding talent.
"But the Niners, again, for them to play in the free agency sandbox, they're going to have to find ways to clear out salary," Schefter concluded, "whether that's through Brandon Aiyuk or [RB] Jordan Mason or any other player that they don't bring back or let go. They have to find ways to get money to help field the kind of roster that they want.
"So if an offer comes in on Brandon Aiyuk, and there's a team out there that's willing to take on that particular situation, I'm sure they would be open to listening to it."
