A timeline of Brandon Aiyuk's relationship with the 49ers slowly, but surely, falling apart
It all seemed so good going into the Super Bowl
The 49ers and star receiver Brandon Aiyuk have been at odds all summer despite a career year from the star wide receiver.
It boils down to money. Aiyuk has been looking for a lengthy and lucrative contract extension from the 49ers, and he still hasn’t gotten it.
Now, it looks like he won’t. At least not from the 49ers. Aiyuk has reportedly requested a trade from San Francisco, according to reporting from NFL Networks’ Mike Garafolo.
READ MORE: Five teams that should trade for Brandon Aiyuk without hesitation
Aiyuk has been on the radar as a potential trade target for a while now, but after today’s news, the 49ers phones are probably ringing off the hook.
Source: #49ers All-Pro WR Brandon Aiyuk has officially requested a trade after an offseason of unsuccessful attempts to reach an extension.
Despite a recent meeting, the Niners haven’t been willing to engage in negotiations since May so Aiyuk has respectfully asked out. pic.twitter.com/EWxYMvsHch
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) July 16, 2024
The trade talks make sense. The 49ers are getting expensive. After signing Christian McCaffrey and Jauan Jennings to extensions this summer, the 49ers have one of the most expensive rosters in the league for next season and are projected to be over the cap in 2025.
But there’s still no guarantee that the 49ers will actually trade Aiyuk, but he could be a huge piece for a team moving forward considering how spectacular he was for San Francisco last season. That’s why it’s so unbelievable that we’re actually here.
Let’s take a look back and see how we got here.
Aiyuk sends a cryptic message after the Super Bowl
Aiyuk dropped a cryptic message on Instagram after the 49ers lost the Super Bowl to the Chiefs back in February. It said “Don’t forget what got you there.”
— Dev
(@Dev1Hunnit) February 13, 2024
This message is where things all started. This was Aiyuk planting his flag in the ground on his upcoming contract negotiation.
John Lynch says the 49ers won’t trade him
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
After Aiyuk sent that message, trade rumors began swirling about surrounding the star wideout.
Amid all the drama, though, 49ers GM John Lynch said Aiyuk was “not available for trade” and that contract talks with him were already underway, according to reporting from ESPN.
“I promise you nothing’s going on there. We’re actively talking with Brandon trying to figure something out. We have a good history of working with the guys we want to get done to get something done and it takes two sides. So, can we do that? We’ll see. There’s a number of different directions that it could go but we appreciate the heck out of Brandon and who he is as a player, and we want him to be a part of the Niners. We’re going to work towards making that a reality.”
Rumors were floating around about Aiyuk moving on to the Steelers or the Commanders. This was Lynch’s attempt to shut them down completely.
Aiyuk calls the 49ers out again
The 49ers receiver called bullcrap on Lynch and the organization. Well, not verbally. He did it through emojis.
This was his new message to the organization toward the end of March.
Brandon Aiyuk’s latest IG story
pic.twitter.com/lp8RDR399N
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) March 25, 2024
Translation: Money talks, bullcrap walks.
Aiyuk skipped 49ers minicamp
Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
After the 49ers didn’t make a move to trade Aiyuk during the NFL draft things cooled down a bit.
It wasn’t until Aiyuk skipped voluntary workouts for San Francisco in June that things came back up. He’d reportedly receive more than $100,000 in potential fines for not showing up.
This isn’t an uncommon tactic. Players looking for new contracts skip camp all the time — both voluntary and mandatory. Nick Bosa did the same thing last year.
But it did show how serious Aiyuk was about either getting a new deal done with the 49ers or making sure he’d be able to go get it somewhere else.
He says he “for sure” wants to be a 49er but says the team doesn’t want him
Aiyuk told TMZ that he wanted to remain in San Francisco with his current team.
But then, he later told Jaden Daniels in a FaceTime conversation that the 49ers said they didn’t want him back.
@brandonaiyuk Im laughing but im crying fr
Talk about mixed messaging. Given everything that’s been said, it’s hard to know exactly what to think.
All we know is that, now, Aiyuk has officially requested a trade. And the 49ers still have a huge decision on their hands.