If the San Francisco 49ers can find a desperate enough team, there might still be a chance to squeeze some value out of 1 of the worst contracts and biggest headaches in franchise history.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox proposed a trade on Wednesday that would send disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk — who hasn’t played since early in the 2024 season — to the Houston Texans in exchange for a conditional 2027 7th-round pick.
With both of the Texans’ top wide receivers, Tank Dell and Nico Collins, having dealt with serious injury issues over their careers, Aiyuk might be a cost-effective option that helps keep their Super Bowl hopes alive.
“If a team becomes desperate for wide receiver help, it can probably have San Francisco 49ers pass-catcher Brandon Aiyuk for next to nothing,” Knox wrote on September 9. “The 49ers have made it clear that they’re ready to move on from their former standout, and they’ve practically begged teams to take him off their hands all offseason … on the positive side, Aiyuk is still only 28 years old and surpassed 1,300 receiving yards when last healthy in 2023.”
Teams Warned Against Trading for Brandon Aiyuk
Aiyuk’s bizarre behavior since he suffered a catastrophic knee injury early in the 2024 season has contributed to him not being traded as much as anything else.
Aiyuk, a former NFL All-Pro, hasn’t played for the 49ers since Week 7 of the 2024 regular season. He inexplicably cut off all contact with the team in the middle of the 2025 regular season — despite still very much being under contract after signing a 4-year, $120 million extension before the 2024 season.
He spent much of this past offseason trying to force a trade to the Washington Commanders — mostly through a series of social media posts.
“The last time I saw Aiyuk was, call it Week 6, 7, or 8. I don’t really know,” 49ers All-Pro tight end George Kittle said on the Pardon My Take podcast on June 21. “I used to make it a habit of mine to go out early in the morning before meetings to watch him train because he’d always be out there early, and I watched him run over 22 miles an hour and stop on a dime. So, he’s still got it, or at least that was a year, eight months ago, so I don’t really know. But you guys have fun with that, I guess . . . You have fun with all that comes with it.”
Brandon Aiyuk … Also Not Talking to Agent
Another thing holding up a possible Aiyuk trade? He’s reportedly not even talking to his agent.
According to a report from NFL Network’s Mike Garofolo on May 20, Aiyuk has essentially ceased communication with his agent, Athletes First’s Ryan Williams, leaving any potential deal up in the air.
“Reports Aiyuk has dropped his agent, Ryan Williams, who may have negotiated the best contract in NFL history at this point, are not accurate; he still represents him,” Garofolo said on The Rich Eisen Show. “(Williams) did not abandon him. Williams was part of the group of people trying to tell (Aiyuk) what was going to happen to him in San Francisco if he did not show up. He did not heed that advice … (Williams) is still his agent of record and still sounds like he would be willing to facilitate something if Aiyuk would just tell him what he wants to do.”
49ers Trade Pitch Sends WR Brandon Aiyuk to Super Bowl Contender