Throughout Thursday’s version of NFL Community’s “The Insiders” program, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport urged that San Francisco 49ers followers should not be shocked if star broad receiver Brandon Aiyuk is nowhere to be seen when veteran San Francisco gamers report back to coaching camp on July 23.
“He does need a contract extension,” Rapoport mentioned in regards to the 26-year-old within the remaining yr of his rookie deal, as shared by David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. “I’d be shocked — we’ll see — however I’d be just a little shocked now if he units foot on the sphere with out an extension. So we definitely haven’t heard the final of this one.”
Aiyuk skipped the membership’s obligatory minicamp final month amid his need for monetary ensures past the upcoming season, however Dan Graziano of ESPN noted on Thursday that the 2020 first-round draft decide seemingly “has begun to make peace with the concept of taking part in for San Francisco on his present contract this season if no new deal materializes.”
Whereas Aiyuk might keep away from the staff via preseason video games to make a degree, people similar to Rapoport have routinely talked about that the 49ers have a historical past of getting offers accomplished with gamers late in summers and forward of regular-season openers.
“If that occurs once more for the 49ers on Aiyuk, they know at the least he’ll be able to play,” Rapoport mentioned in regards to the receiver who has featured just for San Francisco as a professional.
Corridor of Famer Jerry Rice not too long ago argued that Aiyuk ought to welcome a chance to show himself in a contract yr. Such a mindset considerably ignores the truth that the 49ers can retain Aiyuk’s rights for 2025 through the franchise tag.
“If a participant needs to make it clear that he’s not completely happy about the place his contract extension stands, he doesn’t present up,” Rapoport defined. “Now the massive query, after all: Is Aiyuk gonna present up for coaching camp? And you work, if he was keen to take that robust of a stance for minicamp, maybe he might do the identical for coaching camp.”
There stays no indication a 49ers staff trying to play in a second straight Tremendous Bowl contest will commerce a expertise similar to Aiyuk with out with the ability to instantly exchange him this summer time. Aiyuk could also be keen to just accept fines associated to lacking practices, but it surely’s unknown if he’d sit regular-season video games as a negotiating tactic.
