49ers (for now) receiver Brandon Aiyuk has apparently extended an olive branch.
His two recent videos criticizing the 49ers have been deleted. It could be part of an effort to lay the foundation to get the 49ers to finally release him.
In the first video, posted on Sunday, June 7, Aiyuk accused the 49ers of being afraid to let him sign with a new team.
“Stop running from the belt,” Aiyuk said. “The belt coming. You scared. They scared. The truth is they scared. They know how I get. They gonna say, ‘Oh, yeah, B.A. did this, B.A. did that.’ You know that shit — ‘Allegedly. Allegedly.’ But what they not gonna say is ‘B.A. suck at football,’ because they know how I get.
“And they running from that belt that’s on the way. It’s inevitable. It’s coming. Stop running.”
Two days later, Aiyuk added another video message.
“And another thing,” he said. “You wanna know why they really mad, though? They mad ‘cause they stupid. They dumb. They mad that they paid me $50 million in eight months, and they [voided] my guarantees for [2026]. And I’m about to be on a new team in [2026].
“They mad at they selves, for real. They just acting like they mad at me but they stupid-ass mad at they selves.”
Aiyuk could have forced the issue by showing up for the team’s offseason workouts. With a season-ending injury carrying the risk of the 49ers owing him more than $26 million in 2026, the 49ers quite possibly would have released him the moment he walked through the door.
The cancellation of the 49ers’ mandatory minicamp further delayed a potentially awkward situation between player and team.
As it stands, Aiyuk’s best move will be to report for training camp, insist on practicing, and wait for the 49ers to grant his release.
The 49ers had been hoping for a trade, which would have required a significant reworking of Aiyuk’s contract. A new team (like the Commanders) would have acquired the benefit of having him in the building for the offseason program.
The specific reason for Aiyuk deleting the videos isn’t known. It’s not crazy to think that Aiyuk decided to do it based on possible discussions between his agent and the team, given that Aiyuk and 49ers G.M. John Lynch have a connection through their independent relationships with agent Ryan Williams of Athletes First.
Read the full article here
