Brandon Aiyuk names teams he sees himself playing for amid 'standoff' with 49ers

There’s a lot of drama surrounding Brandon Aiyuk and his future with the San Francisco 49ers. He previously told Jayden Daniels, his former college teammate, the team doesn’t want him back.

Not only that, he recently revealed where he could play in 2024 if it’s not in San Francisco this fall. That includes Washington with Daniels, the No. 2 overall pick. 

It just goes to show how Aiyuk feels about his current situation with the 49ers.

“If I were to take a guess, probably a Niner uniform,” Aiyuk said on The Pivot Podcast. “Probably a Niner uniform. If not a Niners uniform, probably a Washington Commanders uniform. If not a Washington Commanders uniform, probably a Steelers uniform.”

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported Saturday Aiyuk is fine in a “standoff” with the organization.

“Brandon Aiyuk, this is feeling more and more like a trade me or pay me situation,” Fowler said on SportsCenter. “Because Aiyuk believes his market is high like these other guys are seeing that $30 million number thrown around. (The) 49ers have shown that they’re not willing to pay that, they’ve also shown they’re not willing to trade him. So he’s a bit stuck right now. It’s a standoff.”

As a former first-round pick, Aiyuk had a fifth-year option on his rookie deal, which the 49ers opted to exercise instead of working out a long-term deal last year. Now, he’s slated to play for $14.124 million this season, well below market value.

49ers defender Nick Bosa previously shared he reached out to Aiyuk amid the holdout. Bosa landed a five-year, $170 million deal last September.

“We chat a little bit, but not too much about the details,” Bosa said. “I just told him (to) keep his head up and try and stay positive through it all.”

Over the course of four years, Aiyuk has 269 catches, 3,931 yards, 25 touchdowns and 14.6 yards per catch. He set a career-high 1,342 yards last season, helping the 49ers reach the Super Bowl.

General manager John Lynch said at the NFL Owners Meetings in Orlando this spring that the team is working on a way to make Aiyuk a 49er for the foreseeable future.

“We’re actively talking with Brandon trying to figure something out,” Lynch said. “We have a good history of working with the guys we want to get done to get something done and it takes two sides. So, can we do that? We’ll see. There’s a number of different directions that it could go but we appreciate the heck out of Brandon and who he is as a player, and we want him to be a part of the Niners. We’re going to work towards making that a reality.”