Insider updates prediction about 49ers, Brandon Aiyuk contract standoff

Dianna Russini, Matt Barrows and David Lombardi of The Athletic reported ahead of the weekend that the San Francisco 49ers had "re-opened up contract discussions with Brandon Aiyuk and his agent" amid Aiyuk's desire for an extension while in the final year of his rookie deal.

For a piece published on Monday, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated shared why he remains confident that "San Francisco can get a deal done with" Aiyuk despite all that's happened this offseason.

"The NFC champions are a lot of things, but dumb is not one of them," Breer said. "The Niners knew what they were doing when they gave Aiyuk the chance to go shop himself to other teams. Their bet, on a player they’ve really wanted to keep, was simple—it’d be tough to find a team with football circumstances nearly as good as the ones he already has willing to offer him what he wants. Thus far, it looks like San Francisco was right."

Specifically, Aiyuk reportedly rejected an opportunity to join the New England Patriots because of concerns related to that team's talent and its quarterback situation. The Patriots made signal-caller Drake Maye the third overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft but are also in the early days of a multi-year rebuild and will likely lose more than they win this coming season.

On Monday, Russini revealed that the Pittsburgh Steelers were "still waiting to hear from San Francisco" regarding Pittsburgh's latest trade offer for Aiyuk. Russini added at that time that Aiyuk was "down to" either staying with the 49ers through at least the upcoming season or joining the Steelers before Week 1.

Aiyuk was linked with the Cleveland Browns last week, but Russini noted that "the Browns don’t believe they have a good chance of landing" his services.

As for Breer, he's repeatedly said over the past several months he believed the 49ers would eventually "take care of" Aiyuk as they look to make a second straight trip to a Super Bowl. Just last week, Breer suggested that San Francisco wanted a team such as Pittsburgh to set Aiyuk's market so that the 49ers could ultimately hold onto him.

"Things have gotten quiet the past couple of days, an indication that the Niners have finally moved off the spot they occupied in May," Breer continued in Monday's piece. "The question then becomes, to me, is whether they can meet Aiyuk’s number, and feel like all that he’s gone through to get here is worth it—because the last thing you’d want is to have is a player who believes he’s been squeezed by the team. If San Francisco pulls it off, don’t be surprised."

Less than 12 months ago, the 49ers and superstar pass-rusher Nick Bosa agreed to a deal days before the team's regular-season opener. Additionally, it was mentioned last week that the franchise could structure an Aiyuk extension in a way that would allow it to also pay quarterback Brock Purdy next offseason.

As of Monday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the 49ers second among the betting favorites at +600 odds to win Super Bowl LIX. Such forecasts help explain why Aiyuk is still with San Francisco but don't guarantee he'll feature for the club in its Week 1 game versus the New York Jets on Sept. 9 without an extension.