SANTA CLARA — Brandon Aiyuk is in the house.
After not appearing at the 49ers’ offseason program or mandatory minicamp, NFL Media reported Tuesday Aiyuk was in the building when the club reported to begin preparation for the 2024 season.
What is not known is whether Aiyuk will participate in the first practice Wednesday, or refrain from practicing until a contract extension is worked out. General manager John Lynch would not confirm Aiyuk’s presence although he expects him to be a 49er this year.
“They still have another hour and change so I don’t know if he is in here but I expect he will support,” Lynch said at a pre-camp press conference. “We stated this really early, have had excellent communication throughout. I really don’t want to characterize it. Brandon is a big part of our team and we expect he will be this year.”
Lynch said he expected Aiyuk to be on the practice field, but that won’t be clear until the first practice Wednesday.
Aiyuk is due a guaranteed $14.124 million under the fifth-year option of his original contract signed as a rookie first-round draft pick out of Arizona State. According to overthecap.com, that would make Aiyuk the 26th highest paid receiver in the NFL after a season in which he caught 75 passes for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns.
In addition, Aiyuk is an enthusiastic blocker in a system of offense that demands it.
Aiyuk’s status has been an open question since the the 49ers lost 25-22 to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII.
When the club returned to Santa Clara and disbanded for the offseason, Aiyuk was emotional as he described the journey through the regular season with his teammates but was non-committal about his own situation, telling reporters, “If it’s the right move, yeah” regarding a 49ers contract extension.
It’s something the 49ers did with tight end George Kittle, linebacker Fred Warner, wide receiver Deebo Samuel and defensive end Nick Bosa. This offseason, the 49ers reached agreement with running back Christian McCaffrey, already the NFL’s highest paid running back, on a two-year extension worth $19 million per year.
The club has publicly said they want Aiyuk aboard on a long-term deal, but there are complicating factors this time.
While Aiyuk waited and negotiations with the 49ers dragged on, a number of NFL wideouts signed megadeals including Justin Jefferson of Minnesota, A.J. Brown of Philadelphia, Amon-Ra St. Brown of Detroit and Jaylen Waddle of Miami with average per year salaries of between $35 million for Jefferson and $28.125 million for Waddle.
Looking into the future, the 49ers are looking at a more complicated salary cap puzzle when Purdy becomes eligible for a new contract. If Purdy has another big year, he could be in line for a deal similar to those of the NFL’s top quarterbacks which at present includes Joe Burrow of Cincinnati ($55 million average), Trevor Lawrence of Jacksonville ($55 million), Jared Goff of Detroit ($53 million), Justin Herbert of the L.A. Chargers $52.5 million), Lamar Jackson of Baltimore ($52 million) and Jalen Hurts of Philadelphia ($51 million).
According to the collective bargaining agreement, Purdy, a seventh-round draft pick, is not eligible for an extension until he has completed three years and as a result has a $985,000 base salary and a cap number of just over $1 million this season.
Aiyuk did not participate in the 49ers offseason program or the mandatory minicamp, a decision which could cost him more than $100,000 in fines. Last season, the 49ers ended up signing Bosa before the start of the regular season and forgave all fines after a holdout.
Aiyuk has dropped cryptic hints via social media regarding the 49ers, but in recent weeks reportedly requested a face-to-face meeting which didn’t bear fruit and a week ago via NFL Media made a trade request. It’s worth noting that Samuel made a similar request following the 2021 season but ended up coming to training camp but not participating until a three-year extension worth $23.8 million was finalized on July 31, 2022.
The following players will open camp on the physically unable to perform list: rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall Jr. (hamstring), defensive end Drake Jackson (patellar tendon), linebacker Dre Greenlaw (Achilles’) and safety Talanoa Hufanga (ACL surgery).
Pearsall was injured working out away from the team in the offseason and is technically on the NFI (non-football injury) list. Coach Kyle Shanahan said it’s hoped Pearsall would be back after missing the first block (four days) of practice sessions.
More to come on this breaking story . . .
