San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is entering the final year of his contract, which has created a complicated situation for the club.
The 49ers have rather significant financial constraints, which may make it impossible for the team to retain Aiyuk long term.
Plus, it doesn’t appear that the star wide out is open to taking any hometown discount, and he essentially said as much during an appearance on The Nightcap podcast this week.
“I’m trying to get what I deserve,” Aiyuk said. “I feel like this season, this season playing football, I figured out who I was as a person and a player — what I bring to the table, what I bring to the locker room, what I bring to the organization. The value I hold when I walk in that building. People gonna follow me because I’ve done it the right way since I’ve been in that building. From the first day I walked in there to when I was in there earlier this morning. If they don’t see the worth in that, that’s all it is. It ain’t nothing else besides that. I can’t get into it. We got professionals working on both sides, so hopefully we can come to a professional agreement to continue playing professional football.”
During Aiyuk’s cameo on the podcast, Chad Johnson said that he felt Aiyuk deserved $30-32 million annually, which Aiyuk appreciated.
If Aiyuk is expecting that type of money, San Francisco can probably say goodbye to him.
The 26-year-old, who played his collegiate football at Arizona State, was selected by the Niners with the 25th overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft.
After a couple of solid seasons to begin his career, Aiyuk broke out in 2022, catching 78 passes for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns.
Then, this past year, Aiyuk was even better, hauling in 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven scores, establishing himself as the 49ers’ clear No. 1 receiver.
San Francisco has to worry about extending quarterback Brock Purdy, and it should also be noted that fellow wide out Deebo Samuel only has two years left on his current contract.
Trade rumors have been swirling around Aiyuk recently, as well.
It’s looking more and more like Brandon Aiyuk will be playing his football elsewhere at some point soon. If not next season, then in 2025.
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