Reported gap between 49ers and Brandon Aiyuk in contract talks should breed optimism of deal getting done
Brandon Aiyuk wasn't at OTAs and he wasn't at mandatory minicamp, indicating that little progress has been made in talks between him and the San Francisco 49ers over a long-term extension. But the gap between the two in their contract talks may not be as big as it seems. Mike Silver of The San Francisco […]
Brandon Aiyuk wasn't at OTAs and he wasn't at mandatory minicamp, indicating that little progress has been made in talks between him and the San Francisco 49ers over a long-term extension.
But the gap between the two in their contract talks may not be as big as it seems.
Mike Silver of The San Francisco Chronicle spoke to KNBR's 'Papa and Lund' podcast on Thursday and indicated that the 49ers have made an offer to Aiyuk that would pay him $26 million annually.
"I’m hearing their offer’s in the $26 million range," said Silver.
"It’s certainly not Justin Jefferson money, nor should it be, but it’s closer to that DeVonta Smith, Amon-Ra St. Brown—that next tier down."
It is the proximity to St. Brown's number that is important. St. Brown's deal pays him $28 million annually over the first three years, and Aiyuk is said to want to surpass the Detroit Lions wideout.
St. Brown's deal featured $77 million in guaranteed money, of which $73.634 million are new guarantees. His fully guaranteed money at signing was $34.66 million.
Recently, Aiyuk's personal receiver coach T.J. Houshmandzadeh spoke of pessimism on the side of the second-team All-Pro about the prospect of a deal getting done.
Explaining why he hasn't worked with Aiyuk this offseason, Houshmanzadeh told 95.7 The Game: "At one point, [Aiyuk] thought he was going to sign, so he was like, 'I'm not going to come out [to work out] because I might have to go when I sign.
"That optimistic outlook has turned into a pessimistic outlook.
"At one point he thought, 'Damn, I might be leaving soon,' and now it's, 'I have no idea.'
"If the 49ers want to get B.A. signed, give him the Amon-Ra deal. I guarantee he'd be in there tomorrow. They don't want to do that. … If they'd offered him Amon-Ra's deal, he would be in camp.
"You just don't want your best players unhappy when you have a history of taking care of your best players."
While Aiyuk may be disheartened right now, the fact the gap is only a couple of million suggests the 49ers will find a way to maintain that track record.
Surpassing St. Brown in guaranteed money will be important to Aiyuk. Given the 49ers gave Deebo Samuel $41 million in fully guaranteed money back in 2022 as part of a deal that featured $58.1 million in overall guarantees, that does not seem like it will be too difficult of a task for a franchise that has structured its contracts around large signing bonuses paid upfront.
San Francisco has typically stuck to a timeline of signing players to extensions around the start of training camp. It means a frustrating waiting game for players and, with so many wide receiver contracts this offseason increasing Aiyuk's leverage, doing so this year can be viewed as a questionable tactic on the part of the 49ers. However, with training camp still over a month away, the Niners have time to work to bridge a relatively insignificant gap and pay Aiyuk the guarantees he desires.
The 49ers, per Over The Cap, have $32.76 million in salary cap space, the sixth most in the NFL. That follows the Christian McCaffrey extension, which has given the 49ers more flexibility for this season and in the coming years, providing them with more wiggle room to find middle ground with Aiyuk.
With any extension for Aiyuk likely to lower his 2024 cap hit, it is in the 49ers' best interests on the field and from a financial sense to come to an agreement with their leading receiver. Possessing the time between now and training camp to thrash out a deal, the smart money still says they do just that.
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