Aiyuk-49ers saga hits inflection point as ‘hold-in’ persists

SANTA CLARA — The Brandon Aiyuk saga might have hit an inflection point on Wednesday. Despite suggestions that this was the day that Aiyuk would end his "hold in," nothing changed when the 49ers took the practice field. And now, this is when things could really get interesting. General manager John Lynch made it known that the expectation was that Aiyuk would practice because the 49ers medical staff cleared him. Earlier in the day, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reported that there was an "understanding" that Aiyuk would practice. Coach Kyle Shanahan said Aiyuk never told him he was going to practice, but he said he was hopeful Aiyuk would be on the field. Now, it looks as if the 49ers are ready to play hardball. Up to this point, everybody knew and understood that Aiyuk was not likely to practice until his contract situation got resolved. Shanahan even played along, saying that Aiyuk had "soreness." But the entire tone changed Wednesday, now that the 49ers have their 53-man roster set and are beginning preparations to face the New York Jets in Week 1 of the 2024 NFL regular season. Before practice on Wednesday, both Lynch and Shanahan said they would not address the...