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Nick Wagoner
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — As the San Francisco 49ers and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk careen toward a crossroads on their future together, plenty of important questions remain unanswered.
On Saturday afternoon, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed the team voided about $27 million in 2026 guarantees on Aiyuk’s contract in late July and then spent most of his news conference fielding many of those leftover queries about Aiyuk’s status. In the ensuing 11 minutes and 54 seconds, Shanahan alternated between offering insight and declining to provide specifics.
One thing is for certain: Shanahan isn’t used to such an unusual scenario.
«I’ve been coaching over 20 years, and I’ve never been in a situation where a contract’s been voided,» Shanahan said. «It’s extremely unusual to me.»
Jauan Jennings and Ricky Pearsall said they’ve been in contact with Aiyuk, though both said they don’t really discuss the business side of things with him.
«I think he’s doing fine,» Pearsall said. «It’s hard because he’s a quiet guy, he’s to himself, but as much as I can reach out to him and show love his way because he’s done that throughout my journey. I’m just trying to pay my dues back to him and I think he’s doing good.»
Given the uncertainty that comes with having guaranteed money voided, it’s fair to wonder if Aiyuk might have already played his final game as a Niner.
If the 49ers move on from Aiyuk in the offseason, the voiding of 2026 guarantees means they will realize more cap savings than they would have otherwise, though there will still be a lot of dead money from accelerated prorated signing (2024) and option (2025) bonuses.
An outright release with no post June 1 designation means the Niners would incur a dead-cap charge of $29.585 million. Beyond next season, Aiyuk is scheduled to receive base salaries of $27.274 million in 2027 and $29.15 million in 2028.
Shanahan said Saturday he is not thinking about parting ways with Aiyuk right now.
«What happened in July doesn’t have anything to do with the future,» Shanahan said. «That had to do with circumstances that, to me, were out of a coach’s hand. … When it comes to the future of this, I would love for BA to be here. I would love for him to get healthy and get back to really helping us out and being part of his team. We haven’t had that in a little bit, and I still hold out hope that he can get there, but he obviously hasn’t gotten there yet.»
Aiyuk signed his four-year, $120 million extension on Aug. 29, 2024, after an often contentious standoff. Through the process, the Niners had trades that would send Aiyuk to the Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers agreed upon. In each case, Aiyuk vetoed the situation so he could ultimately stay in San Francisco.
If Aiyuk doesn’t play another game for the Niners, he will have been paid $48 million to appear in seven games after signing the extension. In those contests, he had 25 receptions for 374 yards and no touchdowns.
At this year’s training camp, there had been some optimism that Aiyuk was coming around. At one point, Shanahan and receivers coach Leonard Hankerson praised him for his participation in meetings. Since, Aiyuk’s presence has become increasingly scarce. Aiyuk has also not been around at the portions of practice open to media and has not been in the locker room during media sessions
Asked Saturday what changed in that time, Shanahan said, «You’d have to ask him.» Shanahan was then asked if he believes Aiyuk is motivated to return to the field this season.
«I don’t think that really matters,» Shanahan said. «I think everyone might have a different opinion of that. … I was told a few weeks ago he was getting closer and we haven’t made progress in that way so far. From my standpoint, I’m just waiting for him to get back to practice.»
