49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is coming off his best season, and it appears he’s still only scratching the surface. His play last season caught the attention of other teams and general manager John Lynch told reporters at the NFL owners meetings that multiple teams have inquired about trading for the 25-year-old receiver. It doesn’t sound like San Francisco has much interest in engaging in those talks.
Aiyuk, a first-round pick in 2020, is about to enter his fourth NFL season and the deadline for the 49ers to pick up his fifth-year option is looming. Lynch indicated the team will pick up that option, which makes a ton of sense. He’s on track to be their best WR if he’s not there already, and his fifth-year option number is $14,124,000 – a more than reasonable for a No. 1 receiver.
The 49ers have already had to make some tough financially-driven decisions this offseason, and the large contracts of left tackle Trent Williams, linebacker Fred Warner, tight end George Kittle, wide receiver Deebo Samuel and the looming mega-deal for defensive end Nick Bosa will force them to make more hard financial choices in the near future. It makes sense that NFL teams smell blood with Aiyuk and would inquire about his availability. Lynch made it sound, at least for now, as though Aiyuk is in the team’s long-term plans.
Here’s Lynch via the San Francisco Chronicle:
“Brandon’s been excellent for us,” Lynch said Monday at the NFL owners’ meetings at the Arizona Biltmore. “I’d be shocked if we didn’t. We still have some time … We’re still discussing, but it probably makes sense to do that for Brandon. He’s a really good player …
“He’s a guy we’re very fortunate to have and he’s just coming into his own, too. He’s only going to get better. So we’re excited about watching Brandon move forward with us.”
Aiyuk had a tremendous rookie season in 2020 despite the team’s overall struggles. His second year began with a thud as he worked to find his way toward a step forward as a pro. Even with a slow start to that year, he found a way to put together a strong year to set the table for a breakout 2022 campaign.
Last season Aiyuk put up 78 receptions, 1,015 receiving yards and eight touchdowns – all career-highs. That’s an impressive year by any standard, but it’s made even more notable because of the myriad of other weapons in the 49ers’ offense. He was sharing time with Samuel, Kittle and Christian McCaffrey in an offense that went through three quarterbacks and was top 10 in rush attempts while finishing in the bottom 10 in pass attempts.
The arrow is still pointing up for Aiyuk. The 49ers sound poised to bet on him long-term, and based on his ascension through three years, that’s the right bet to make.
