49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk wants the second contract that he has earned. The 49ers don’t seem to be inclined to give him one, at least not at the level he has targeted.
Will they get something done?
Via Jordan Elliott of NBCSportsBayArea.com, Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reported on Friday that the two sides aren’t close on a new deal. And that’s no surprise.
The 49ers have the right to squat on Aiyuk in 2023 at his fifth-year option of $14.12 million. His rights are limited, and expensive. Due to his status as a player under his fifth-year option, he would be subject to a daily fine of $40,000 for skipping training camp and a fine in the amount of one regular-season game check (i.e., $784,444) for each preseason game missed. (The fines can be waived by the team.)
Before that, Aiyuk can skip the offseason program, including the mandatory minicamp (the total fine for skipping the three-day mandatory camp is $101,716). And while that could help him get what he wants, the 49ers need to remember what missing the offseason did to receiver Deebo Samuel in the first year after he got his long-term deal.
Speaking of Samuel, Aiyuk is surely irked that Samuel received a long-term contract after only three seasons — and that Samuel averages $23.85 million per year when Aiyuk was the far more productive player in 2023.
It all comes down to whether the 49ers are willing to tear up the last year of the five-year contract and give Aiyuk what he wants. They might be willing to reward him with a new contract, but not for top-of-market money.
Currently, the highest paid receiver is Tyreek Hill, at $30 million per year. But that’s a fugazi number, inflated by a bogus 2026 compensation package of $45 million. Take that away, and it’s a $28.3 million deal.
Regardless of where the bar is currently, it’s going to increase once the Vikings pay Justin Jefferson and/or the Bengals pay Ja’Marr Chase. That will only make it more expensive to sign Aiyuk.
That’s the one basic reality that most teams ignore. Waiting rarely makes it cheaper to sign the player. In most cases, it only gets more expensive.
