The 49ers didn’t put a ring on Brandon Aiyuk’s finger.
But they did say, “fine, let’s stay together for the kid.” Aiyuk looked around at the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots and felt the same way.
After getting close in talks early in the offseason, then radio silence, then FaceTime proclamations that “they don’t want me” on social media with Jayden Daniels, then podcasts with ex-NFL players… flanked by Daniels, then fruitless, desperate meetings, then OTA holdouts, then training camp hold-ins, then trade requests, then bro hugs with Kyle Shanahan, then trade “frameworks,” then social media users with avatars of dogs claiming a trade to Pittsburgh was done, then trade rejections, then offers being upped, then appearances at practice, then disappearances at practice, then not-so-subtle threats from Shanahan and John Lynch, Aiyuk finally signed a contract Thursday afternoon.
He inked a four-year, $120 million deal with a reported $76 million in guarantees, with $47 million to be paid by April 1 of 2025.
Sure, great. Saga over.
Not quite. This is the ugliest negotiations have gotten under Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. Instead of this deal being announced as a celebration of Aiyuk’s achievement, a glorious moment of matrimony with one of the team’s young stars, it came out with potshots from either side.
You had NFL Network break the news, reporting the figures, and guarantees. Ian Rapoport tagged Aiyuk’s agent, Ryan Williams, and reported that $47 million figure as a clear sign, from the Aiyuk camp, that this is a win.
Then Adam Schefter chimed in. Where does his information come from? Take a wild guess. Schefter reported the deal in much colder terms in since-updated tweets.
“In the end, Brandon Aiyuk accepted the same deal that has been on the table since August. 12, per league sources. His hold-in did not alter any part of his new four-year, $120 million extension. He took the same deal that had been there in previous weeks. Hold-in over,” Schefter wrote.
The message, clearly, is that the 49ers did not give in. They want it known they did not cave.
Aiyuk’s agent, Williams, clapped right back, writing, “That’s factually inaccurate but the check still cashes.”
Schefter updated the initial tweet that wrote August 10, to August 12.
I know, I know. Who cares? It’s over.
Believe me, this saga has been as annoying to me as anyone else. Both sides handled this poorly. Aiyuk chose amateurish ways to try and make the 49ers uncomfortable, and he certainly accomplished that. The 49ers tried to call his bluff, somewhat successfully. Maybe that’s the theme of these negotiations: somewhat successful.
Somewhat, because Aiyuk missed most of camp, and because the 49ers, given the way they negotiated, could have gotten him cheaper, earlier in the offseason, had they worked out a deal then. In the end, the 49ers keep their star X receiver, Brock Purdy’s favorite target.
Aiyuk gets his payday. He’s the clear winner in this. And the 49ers are winners, too, if they keep winning, and Aiyuk keeps producing. They lock in one of the few young stars they have on the same timeline with Purdy.
But this thing got to the brink, and that should not be forgotten given what this means for the future.
The Athletic’s Diana Russini reported that the 49ers would have traded Aiyuk to the Steelers if the Denver Broncos had taken a third-round pick for Courtland Sutton. The Broncos declined.
That is all meaningful. The 49ers know Aiyuk is valuable, but they didn’t put him in that clear, top-flight category that they put Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Fred Warner, Trent Williams and Nick Bosa in. Even Deebo Samuel signed after a near OPOY season, when his market was clear.
Despite that, they committed to Aiyuk.
It was the most protracted negotiation of their tenure, and they still have Trent Williams, who will not budge on whatever his number is, to deal with. Williams has no guaranteed money remaining on his deal.
And let’s be clear about this. Williams will not show up unless the 49ers cut the check he’s asking for. The 49ers don’t have leverage with him. He can retire, or hold out as long as he wants. And as his own history shows, he’ll sit out a season if that’s what it takes.
Those Williams talks are especially tricky for the 49ers because of how much money they now have committed, and what their tempestuous matrimony with Aiyuk means in practical terms.
Next offseason, the 49ers’ future core will come into focus.
It is likely the end for Deebo Samuel and others with the 49ers. The 49ers would save north of $9 million by trading him before June 1 and north of $17 million by trading him after it.
Cutting Javon Hargrave after June 1 would save the team $20.7 million. Maliek Collins’ non-guaranteed $10 million is another possible cut.
What about Deommodore Lenoir and Charvarius Ward? The latter of those two counts for north of $12 million on the cap next season, whether or not he plays for you, but it might be harder to replace Lenoir. It’s unlikely they can afford both.
Their entire focus will be on signing Brock Purdy – assuming he performs well this year – to a north-of $55 million-per-year extension. And if this offseason is any indication, their old ways of doing things – drawing out negotiations to the last second – would seem inadvisable.
They’ve now “lost” negotiations, if you will, to Bosa, McCaffrey, Aiyuk, and they will absolutely have to cave on Williams if they are even remotely serious about this last dance thing. They will not “win” on Purdy. After that, money’s going to get very tight.
But who’s in that group? With Aiyuk intact for the next two, and probably three seasons, who else sticks around?
There’s Christian McCaffrey for one more year. After that, it’s dependent on health and performance.
George Kittle is likely safe for another year. If he plays well, and stays healthy, he’ll stay a part of the core, too. But he’ll be 32 next season, and he admitted to us media members that he knows his play will determine what the future looks like. The 49ers’ lack of an in-house replacement helps his case, as does his All-Pro caliber at a position that’s not very expensive at the top of the market.
Nick Bosa and Fred Warner are lynchpins. They’re good, though Bosa is safer than Warner.
And Williams? If he gets his way, he’ll be secured for the next two, maybe three seasons.
After that, the 49ers are going to need rookies, and the cheap-to-mid-level players of the world to buoy them, because they’ll be paying a quarterback 21-to-23 percent of the cap, a defensive end 13 percent of it, and a receiver 11.5 percent of it. It won’t quite work out that neatly depending on how the deals are structured, but that’s about 45 percent of your cap committed to three players.
Winning solves all, but with Aiyuk signed, this firmly becomes a last dance… at least once you get your Hall-of-Fame left tackle back in the building.
Follow Jake on Twitter/X @hutchdiesel for more 49ers content. Read his exclusive profile with Fred Warner below.
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