Steve Young isn't pleased with how turbulent this offseason has been for the San Francisco 49ers. As a team striving to bounce back from a heartbreaking Super Bowl defeat and prove they can finally win it all, the spotlight has instead been on the contract standoffs involving star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and offensive tackle Trent Williams.
With so much at stake in 2024, Young finds it hard to see eye to eye with Aiyuk and how the wideout has handled the situation.
"It was like, bro, if you want to tear up the contract and do something big, then you might want to go the fifth year and go prove it out, to make sure that everybody's on board with you setting the market," Young said on Bay Area radio station KNBR.
Young is referring to Aiyuk playing under his fifth-year option and demonstrating that he deserves top receiver money, which he reportedly seeks. While the 49ers value Aiyuk, they're reluctant to make him one of the NFL's highest-paid receivers, especially with quarterback Brock Purdy's impending contract likely to tighten the team's salary-cap flexibility.
Frustrated with the negotiation process, Aiyuk requested a trade before reporting to training camp. The 49ers explored that option and found suitors in the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots. However, Aiyuk derailed both deals by refusing to sign a contract with either team.
"If you're going to ask to be traded, then when they make a trade that works for them, you got to say you're up for it," Young continued. "You don't say, 'Oh, no, that doesn't work for me,' because then, it was like, 'Well, what do you want?'"
Despite the tension, Young believes reconciliation is possible.
"It's not like they're broken relationships, but it's stretched. It's strained," he said. "And I think, at the end of the day, Brandon's now sitting in front of a contract that's probably [one that] the 49ers have stretched as much as they possibly can. They don't want to set the market. They don't want to do it. They don't think it's the time."
Young sees Aiyuk as being "in a bind" with two choices: play on the fifth-year option or accept the 49ers' latest offer. The challenge is that Aiyuk seemingly wants to remain in Santa Clara while also nearing the top of the receiver pay scale.
"That's where the agent's got to be able to figure out a way to bring that player to see the values other than the dollars," Young said. "... [To tell Aiyuk] there's a lot of great players out there that are playing with brutal teams that have no chance to see the full measure of who they could be as a player, and that's not you."
As for Williams, Young understands his perspective. Williams is the best offensive lineman in the NFL, but his current deal, which once set the market, no longer reflects that and lacks guaranteed money in its remaining years. However, with the big picture being a championship, it's tough for the Hall of Fame quarterback to side with Williams.
"Now, you're going to come back and say, 'No, I want to set [the market] again because there's another $8 million collectively that I can go get. I'm on my last contract, and I'm getting older,'" Young commented. "Bro, do you not see what we're trying to get done here? ... So, I think that the noise that Trent has made, which luckily Brandon's covered him a little bit, I just don't know. When you're the best in the league, you've been here for a while, you're older, you're more mature, there's a way to do this that ... now, we're still here."
Young believes that resolving the Aiyuk and Williams situations before Week 1 and securing a win against the New York Jets will help everyone forget about the offseason drama. However, if the 49ers don't win the Super Bowl, critics may look back at this noisy offseason and start pointing fingers at the three sides while trying to assign blame.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Young below.
