The San Francisco 49ers are seeking trade offers for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk after the 2026 NFL Draft. General manager John Lynch indicated Aiyuk's time with the team is likely over following a falling out during his knee injury recovery.
Key points
49ers are seeking trade offers for Brandon Aiyuk
General manager John Lynch suggests Aiyuk's time is over
Aiyuk had a falling out with the team during his injury
Efforts to find a trade partner have been unsuccessful
The 49ers have made it clear they plan to eventually move on from Aiyuk. General manager John Lynch told reporters in an end-of-season news conference it was "safe to say he's played his last snap with the 49ers" after the two parties had a falling out while the veteran wide-out was out of action due to a knee injury.
Despite this, the 49ers have been holding onto Aiyuk, hoping they can eventually find a trade partner for him. Thus far, their efforts have been unsuccessful.
"We're available. Give us a call," Lynch said. "And like I said earlier, I think it's the prudent thing to do. He’s an extremely talented player. He's been an extremely effective player in our league; situation didn't work itself out here. That's not to say that it can't be rekindled somewhere else. And we'd be happy to do something with anyone if the opportunity presented itself."
Lynch was also asked whether the 49ers would consider releasing Aiyuk as they remain unable to find a trade partner.
If the 49ers do eventually release Aiyuk, it will likely be with a post-June 1 designation. Doing so would allow the team to spread his dead-cap hit – which is salary cap space allocated to a player no longer on the roster – of nearly $33.6 million over two seasons.
However, San Francisco doesn't have to wait until after June 1 to make such a maneuver. NFL teams are allowed to designate up to two players as post-June 1 releases at any point after the start of the new league year, and the 49ers haven't yet utilized that designation in 2026.
So, all that's stopping the 49ers from releasing Aiyuk is their desire to acquire something from him via trade.
Will that happen? That remains unclear. The Washington Commanders have "significant interest" in the 28-year-old receiver, according to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, but they have thus far been content to wait for the 49ers to release him.
As such, the stare-down between the 49ers, Aiyuk and teams interested in acquiring him could linger well into the quieter months of the 2026 NFL offseason.