San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk has not practiced throughout training camp, nor has he played in the preseason.
The star pass-catcher is entering the final year of his deal and is angling for a contract extension, but his act is apparently wearing thin on the 49ers.
San Francisco general manager John Lynch commented on the Aiyuk situation on Wednesday, and he seems to be fed up.
“At some point, you’ve got to play,” Lynch said, via the 49ers’ official X account.
Lynch said that the “expectation” was that Aiyuk would practice on Wednesday, but that did not happen. Aiyuk has been present at camp, so technically, he is not holding out. However, he has not actually participated, as he is waiting for a new deal.
The problem is that the regular season is less than two weeks away, and no agreement has been reached between San Francisco and the 26-year-old.
Aiyuk is the 49ers’ No. 1 receiver, so not having him on the field for Week 1 would obviously be significant. He hauled in 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns in 2023 en route to a Second-Team All-Pro selection.
What type of money is Brandon Aiyuk seeking from the San Francisco 49ers?
A plethora of wide receivers have earned contract extensions this offseason. Most recently, Dallas Cowboys star CeeDee Lamb landed a four-year, $136 million deal. That made him the second-richest receiver in football, as Minnesota Vikings stud Justin Jefferson earned a four-year, $140 pact earlier in the offseason.
Plus, Philadelphia Eagles wide out A.J. Brown agreed to a three-year, $96 million contract.
Aiyuk is not on the same level as Jefferson or Lamb. He probably isn’t as good as Brown, either. That puts him in a similar ballpark to Detroit Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who landed a deal from the Lions that will pay him $30 million annually.
If Aiyuk is looking for Jefferson or Lamb money, you can see why the 49ers have been unable to come to terms with him. He is probably worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $30-32 million per year, but Aiyuk may be aiming for a larger deal than that.
We’ll see if the San Francisco 49ers can get Brandon Aiyuk to put pen to paper before the season opener against the New York Jets.
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