Persona non grata with the 49ers for over a year, Brandon Aiyuk has off the radar since the start of the season. A strange effort to influence a move to the Commanders hit a speedbump — one Aiyuk created — this summer, and even with San Francisco reeling at wide receiver, the disgruntled 49er is not viewed as an option to help the cause.
Aiyuk remains on the 49ers’ reserve/left squad list, as John Lynch confirmed in July. November has arrived, and the former All-Pro still has not filed for reinstatement. The former first-round pick suffered ACL, MCL and meniscus tears in October 2024 and has not played since. The 49ers voided Aiyuk’s guarantees in July 2025, expressing issues with his rehab approach. Weirder headlines have emerged since, as the Arizona State alum runs the risk of being one of this NFL era’s signature what-ifs.
More than two years since his most recent NFL game, Aiyuk looks to be at least considering steps toward resuming his career. He is making an effort to return to the field, veteran insider Jordan Schultz tweets. This will lead to a key development, with ESPN’s Adam Schefter reporting the wideout hired Drew Rosenhaus as his agent.
Aiyuk’s enigmatic behavior since his injury should certainly give pause before any assumptions are made he will return. With the season nearly half over, Aiyuk is running out of time for a comeback this year. But the Rosenhaus hire figures to expedite the wideout’s return process, which has been messy (putting it mildly).
The 49ers still hold Aiyuk’s rights, and the receiver’s barrage of offseason social media salvos featured a decree he would not do business with the team (even as he needed to in order to be reinstated). Though San Francisco’s effort to trade him this offseason proved futile, this situation has been in a holding pattern for a long time. Aiyuk is not being paid while on the left squad list, representing one of the bizarre elements — though not as bizarre as the player’s rehab process leading to the rare guarantee voiding — of this saga. He signed a four-year, $120MM extension with the 49ers in 2024; that has become one of the more regrettable paydays in NFL history.
Although the team voided Aiyuk’s guarantees last July, this did not become public until November 2025. When The Athletic published a report of that 49ers decision, Aiyuk broke off communication with the team. Aiyuk had been making appearances at the 49ers’ facility before the report became public, but The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar reports the player stopped showing up once the guarantee component became public knowledge. Aiyuk stopped communicating with 49ers coaches, teammates and the organization’s training staff at that point.
Aiyuk, now 28, needs to submit a letter requesting reinstatement. For months, he has been without an agent after firing his previous representative in June. NFLPA attempts to reach the player had gone unanswered during that time, Dugar adds. But the Rosenhaus hire points to action, at long last.
This hire coming eight days before the trade deadline is probably not coincidental, and while the 49ers would assuredly love to land anything for the sunk cost, they may end up releasing him once the reinstatement request emerges (and money reenters the equation). The receiver will need to do some final business with his longtime employer soon, but it is certainly possible — given everything that has transpired since the injury; this includes an arrest warrant on a speeding infraction — the 2026 season ends without Aiyuk playing. It is safe to say the once-high-priced pass catcher’s value has cratered, but this much-discussed situation — after a lengthy hiatus — will need to be monitored once again.
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