General manager John Lynch was on KNBR’s Murph & Markus on Thursday, and the Aiyuk situation came up after the league reinstated the receiver earlier this week.
Lynch called it “still fluid” and said the team is “kind of working through some options.”
Then he was asked the obvious follow-up: would the 49ers be worried about Aiyuk landing with a division rival or another NFC contender if they release him?
“No,” Lynch said.
He called Aiyuk “a really good player” but said “things just went awry,” adding, “That’s not a concern. That’s life.”
Lynch also said it was “kind of sad the way things went down” and that “there’ll come a day” when he can share more about “the whole saga.”
Clock Running On Exemption
The NFL reinstated Aiyuk on Monday after he reported to the team and passed his physical.
He’s off the reserve/left squad list, but San Francisco received a roster exemption that runs through Monday, November 23, the day after its Week 11 game against the Minnesota Vikings in Mexico City.
Until then, he doesn’t count against the 53-man roster, and the 49ers have to decide whether to keep him, release him, or find another way out.
Brandon Aiyuk back at practice after agreeing to return to the 49ers https://t.co/TVazLYfwMQ
— ButlerIsKing (@ButlerIsKing) November 6, 2026
A trade didn’t happen before Tuesday’s deadline, and head coach Kyle Shanahan has made his feelings pretty clear.
“It means absolutely nothing to our team,” Shanahan said of the reinstatement.
Lynch wouldn’t comment on reports that the 49ers are trying to recover around $13 million in bonus money from Aiyuk, saying only that the team relies on the collective bargaining agreement to handle those matters.
San Francisco also voided the guaranteed money in Aiyuk’s contract for 2026, citing his lack of participation while he recovered from his knee injuries.
NFC Team Already Interested
If the 49ers do cut him, Aiyuk might not be waiting long for a new opportunity.
“I’m told at least one NFC team has internally discussed the possibility of adding Aiyuk to its practice squad if and when that happens,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported Tuesday.
His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, expects him back on the field this season.
“Brandon Aiyuk passed his physical and he was reinstated by the league. I definitely expect him to play this season and there is interest in him,” Rosenhaus said on The Pat McAfee Show.
Rosenhaus also offered a hint about where he might land.
Sources: #49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk passed his physical Monday and was officially reinstated. The next step is hoping for a release from San Francisco, and I’m told at least one NFC team has internally discussed the possibility of adding Aiyuk to its practice squad if and when that happens.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) November 10, 2026
“I think that in all likelihood Brandon (Aiyuk) would probably sign with a team that knows him, somebody that has somehow been affiliated with him either in college or the 49ers. That’s just my guess,” he said.
That description fits the Washington Commanders. Quarterback Jayden Daniels was Aiyuk’s college teammate at Arizona State, and GM Adam Peters was in San Francisco’s front office when the 49ers drafted him in 2020.
Washington was also linked to Aiyuk before the season, and Terry McLaurin is now out for the year. However, given Aiyuk's recent comments about Daniels and the Commanders, that could be a longshot to happen.
Aiyuk hasn’t played since tearing the ACL and MCL in his right knee in October 2024, just weeks after signing a four-year, $120 million extension with San Francisco.
The season before that, he earned second-team All-Pro honors after racking up 1,342 receiving yards.
