Brandon Aiyuk tells ex-teammate the 49ers 'don't want me back'

The 49ers have been negotiating with Aiyuk on a new contract since before the 2024 draft. The team reportedly made him an offer in the $26M-per-year range, which would have made him the eighth-highest paid receiver in the NFL, but the 26-year-old turned it down.

Aiyuk is set to play on his $14.124M fifth-year option. San Francisco could end up paying double that on a per-year basis the way the WR market is trending. 

Six of the top-10 highest-paid WRs signed their deals this offseason, led by Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson ($35M per year), Philadelphia’s A.J. Brown ($32M per year) and Detroit’s Amon-Ra St. Brown ($30.02M per year.)

Aiyuk’s personal wide receivers coach, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, recently stated a deal similar to the one the Lions gave St. Brown (four years, $120M) would likely get it done.

The 49ers are already paying fellow wideout Deebo Samuel $23.85M per season, and if Aiyuk were re-signed, his deal would likely have to be between what St. Brown and Jefferson make.

If Aiyuk doesn’t sign long-term, the 49ers could either franchise tag him next season and move on from him after 2025 or trade him this year to a WR-needy team like the Pittsburgh Steelers and recoup some draft capital.