The San Francisco 49ers signed Brandon Aiyuk to a huge extension following a lengthy negotiation last offseason, and the team apparently now has buyer’s remorse.
Tim Kawakami of The San Francisco Standard discussed the current state of the 49ers during a Thursday appearance on KNBR’s “Papa & Silver Show.” The longtime reporter said he doubts the 49ers will trade Aiyuk in the coming weeks, but he has been told the team regrets signing the wide receiver to a 4-year, $120 million extension prior to last season.
“I think the negotiators never felt good about that number, ever, $30 million a year,” Kawakami said. “I think they were ready to trade him multiple times last year, maybe even the year before. … I’ll just say the general theme here is 49ers’ top not being happy with those deals, not being happy with a lot of deals, not being happy with the money that they’ve paid, as John Lynch talked about in Indianapolis.”
The 49ers recently traded Deebo Samuel to an NFC contender. Kawakami thinks that move makes it even less likely that San Francisco will move Aiyuk, especially with the 26-year-old recovering from a torn ACL.
Aiyuk had his best season in 2023 with 75 catches for 1,342 yards and 7 touchdowns. That was his second straight 1,000-yard season and gave him leverage in contract talks. It always seemed like the 49ers were hesitant to make Aiyuk one of the highest-paid receivers in the league, but the market was set and they did not want to lose him.
For now, the 49ers are probably stuck with Aiyuk. Teams will likely want to see how he recovers before even considering a trade.
