The possibility of Brandon Aiyuk leaving the San Francisco 49ers is getting more real by the minute. Both star edge rusher Nick Bosa and head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke candidly about the situation on Tuesday, and neither sounded confident the organization would retain the reliable wideout.
Bosa acknowledged that the trade rumors are far from ideal, via NinersNation.com's Kyle Posey.
“Nick Bosa on Brandon Aiyuk's situation: ‘It's brutal. I trust [GM] John [Lynch] and Kyle, but he's a very tough player to replace.'”
Aiyuk has been reliable for San Francisco since the team selected him 25th overall in 2020. The Arizona State alum has totaled 3,931 receiving yards across 62 games thus far, which averages out to approximately 1,078 yards per full 17-game season. Aiyuk has also totaled 25 scores and 269 catches.
Shanahan has been spoiled with the ability to throw Aiyuk in the mix with Deebo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, and George Kittle over the last couple of seasons. However, the veteran coach has to focus on the players he can rely on to show up in Week 1, via NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
“I mean, you want it to be [resolved] badly, but this stuff does take time,” Shanahan said. “Every day I hope it gets resolved, but I have no timetable on it, didn't surprise me coming into this. I'm going about coaching the team, getting them ready for Week 1, and hopefully it'll get resolved sooner rather than later.”
The 44-year-old then assured that “there's a scenario for anything” when asked if the team could still work out a long-term deal with Aiyuk.
How will this saga play out?
Brandon Aiyuk holds the cards in any trade scenario with the 49ers
While Aiyuk can't force San Francisco to give him a top-of-the-market extension due to the team's ability to franchise tag him for the next two seasons, he can reject any contract offer from any potential trade partner the team has. On top of that, the club is unlikely to get a return for the 2023 second-team All-Pro honoree that would help in its chase for a Super Bowl this season.
“Brandon's a great player, so it's real hard to be better when you lose a great player,” Shanahan continued. “So, we've got to look at anything, we've got to understand the situation we're in, what that looks like, and that does take time. Hopefully, it'll all work out best for him and best for us in the long run.”
Regardless, Shanahan insists that there isn't a bombshell update yet.
“I'm not getting into anything specific with offers, contracts, trades, anything like that, but what I can tell you is nothing has changed. I know a lot was out yesterday and stuff, but from the situation with Brandon, nothing has changed.”
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