Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s attempt at an NFL comeback is underway — though it’s not entirely clear if or when he’ll be able to pull it off.
More than two years after his last NFL snap, Aiyuk is pushing to make his way back, starting by hiring agent Drew Rosenhaus this week. Next up will be trying to make nice with the San Francisco 49ers, resolving a yearlong saga in order to let Aiyuk return to the field.
Advertisement
Rosenhaus told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that he and Aiyuk will meet with the team at the 49ers’ facility at 3 p.m. on Friday. “We will put our best foot forward and go from there,” Rosenhaus told Schefter.
A potential wrinkle in that plan, though, is that Aiyuk owes the team around $13 million in bonus forfeiture as a result of the saga, per The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero. The NFL Management Council and NFL Players Association are involved in trying to find a resolution, which could include an agreement to pay the money back, or potential arbitration, per Pelissero.
Aiyuk missed the entire 2025 season with ACL and MCL tears sustained in October 2024. But the real drama began last November, as the 49ers voided the receiver’s 2026 contract guarantees after Aiyuk’s relationship with the team became increasingly strained when he failed to show up for team rehab sessions and couldn’t be reached for contact. In January, San Francisco general manager John Lynch said that Aiyuk had played his last snap with the Niners.
Advertisement
In June, Aiyuk continued to publicly ask the team to cut him so he could sign somewhere else, specifically the Washington Commanders. But that wasn’t going to be possible until he was reinstated from the the reserve/left squad, where he landed because he failed to show up for mandatory team activities, including training camp.
In a video, the receiver said that he would never step foot in the 49ers’ facility again; he also claimed that he had fired his agent.
Now, with Rosenhaus leading Aiyuk’s negotiations, the receiver will hope to finally get his new start elsewhere, assuming the 49ers trade or cut him.
