Negotiations between the San Francisco 49ers and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk on a new contract aren't in a good place, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
Fowler reported Sunday on SportsCenter that "things have stalled a bit." Fowler continued:
They're going to see what happens over the next six weeks leading into training camp. The 49ers want Aiyuk long-term in the fold but so far, they have not been willing to show that they're going to meet the market of wide receiver, which we're seeing these massive numbers. Amon-Ra St. Brown in Detroit $30 million, Justin Jefferson well above that. Aiyuk believes he's a top guy, and so, something's got to give. And so, he's worked himself into a top-10 receiver conversation. We'll see, not a lot of momentum right now. Not a lot of optimism.
Aiyuk is in the last year of his rookie contract, and his $14.1 million salary is a bargain in the current market. With four receivers now earning $30 million or more, his yearly payout could plausibly double on his next deal.
Appearing on KNBR 680's Papa & Lund (via Taylor Wirth of NBC Sports Bay Area), the San Francisco Chronicle's Mike Silver reported the Niners' most recent offer to Aiyuk was "in the $26 million range."
Ahead of the 2024 NFL draft, 49ers general manager John Lynch said the franchise values Aiyuk and wants him to spend his entire career in the Bay Area.
However, Fowler has remained consistent about the lack of tangible progress between the two sides at the bargaining table.
Speaking to reporters in the spring, Lynch drew a comparison to Deebo Samuel's standoff with the team in 2022. The 2021 All-Pro requested a trade before signing a three-year extension months later.
It's worth examining how much the market has shifted since then, though.
Samuel's average salary of $23.9 million ranked eighth among receivers at the time, per Spotrac. Making Aiyuk the eighth-highest-paid player at the position would mean going up to $25 million or more. And DeVonta Smith's three-year, $75 million is already being looked at differently after teammate A.J. Brown and then Jefferson reset the price for elite pass-catchers.
It's still only mid-June, so a breakthrough between now and the regular season is possible for Aiyuk and San Francisco.
Based on the available reporting, that might require more movement on the part of Lynch and the front office.
