Like most players, Aiyuk wants to be paid his worth.
The San Francisco 49ers enter another offseason where one of their star players wants to be compensated. Luckily for them, this is the second time in recent memory that they’ve gone through this with a wide receiver.
We’re a couple of years removed from Deebo Samuel requesting a trade to the New York Jets in late March. The Niners never pulled the trigger on a trade after failing to get an offer they deemed valuable enough for Deebo, and Samuel was extended just as training camp got underway on the final day of July 2022.
Two years later, it’s Deja Vu. This time, Brandon Aiyuk is coming off an All-Pro-esque season. Aiyuk is under contract for another year, but the price tag for the fifth-year option of a wide receiver would make BA the 21st-highest-paid wideout in the league.
Aiyuk recently appeared on the popular “The Nightcap” podcast hosted by Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco. Aiyuk, like Arik Armstead, knows his worth:
“I’m trying to get what I deserve. 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.”
Head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch have spoken about Aiyuk a couple of times since the season ended, and both seem unconcerned about the deal getting done. Shanahan said these deals take time.
Aiyuk has seemingly done everything the right way, from on-field performance to buying into the 49ers culture. It helps that he’s one of the best players at his position in the NFL. All of this would lead you to believe that both sides will work out a deal at some point this offseason, whether that’s in late spring or right before training camp.