While the San Francisco 49ers are looking to make a Super Bowl push this postseason, they will need to address the situation with Brandon Aiyuk. Moreover, wideout Kendrick Bourne shed light on the issue with behind-the-scenes details.
Friction between Aiyuk and the 49ers came to light on November 21, when The Athletic reported that the team removed guaranteed money from the 2026 portion of the contract after certain training camp conditions were not met. That decision erased a $24.935 million option bonus that had been set to become guaranteed on April 1.
Less than a month later, on December 13, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco reported that Aiyuk was placed on the reserve/left squad list, reinforcing the belief that an offseason parting remains a strong possibility.
Amid this run that the Niners are on as they can win the NFC West and No. 1 seed in the conference with a Week 18 win over the Seattle Seahawks, Bourne appeared on the December 29 edition of “Speakeasy“ and shared what’s been going on behind the scenes with Aiyuk.
“When I first got in the building, I missed Week 1,” Bourne said. “I saw him a little bit, so I didn’t really know what was going on. I was just pouring into him like, Hey, man, how are you doing? Seeing him in the sauna sometimes, rehabbing. Then all the things happened.
“So he’s MIA, too, within the building, man. So it’s been tough. I’ve been praying for him, man, because I know how tough it is when you’re chasing certain things and what you gain. So it’s concerning. It’s very concerning. So all I can really do is pray for him.”
NFL Insider Drops Take on 49ers, Brandon Aiyuk
With both sides likely heading toward a separation, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer shared his thoughts on the situation between Aiyuk and the 49ers.
“He chose to stay in San Francisco,” Breer said on the December 17 edition of “The Breer Report.“ “He wanted to stay in California, and he took less money to stay in California. But this is a bizarre situation.
“I think if you want to put some blame on the Niners here, I think it’s fair to put some blame on the Niners because they had him in their building for four years prior to signing him to that new deal. They knew who he was, and they were dealing with him in a contract negotiation that got kind of ugly, and so, like, the warning signs were there.”
Richard Sherman Weighs In on Brandon Aiyuk
Additionally, former 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman shared his take on the situation involving the Arizona State product. He suggested that once negative reports about Aiyuk and the team started surfacing in the media, a separation became almost inevitable.
“It felt like a split was inevitable at the time, “Sherman said on the December 14 edition of “The Richard Sherman Podcast.“ “Maybe things mended a little bit when he got paid, and everyone was happy, but even the way the injury happened stood out. I think he played four games, got banged up, and has not seen the field since. Everything that has come out of the 49ers camp has been pretty negative.
“When every conversation and every interaction turns negative, it feels destined to end in a split. I know people feel strongly about them voiding the guarantee as soon as they could, but the San Francisco 49ers did not want to void Brandon Aiyuk’s guarantee.”
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