Somehow, some way, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk might be headed back to the NFL.
According to a report on Tuesday, if the 49ers release Aiyuk, at least one team is waiting to give him a job.
“Sources: 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk passed his physical Monday and was officially reinstated. The next step is hoping for a release from San Francisco, and I’m told at least one NFC team has internally discussed the possibility of adding Aiyuk to its practice squad if and when that happens,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz wrote on his official X account on Tuesday.
Aiyuk Takes First Steps Toward NFL Return
The saga between Aiyuk and the 49ers took another strange turn on Friday, when he reported to the team’s practice facility with agent Drew Rosenhaus after Aiyuk left the team unexpectedly more than a year ago.
Aiyuk and Rosenhaus both issued statements upon arrival, stepping out of a black van to speak with the assembled media.
“Nice to see ya’ll. Yeah, I’m feeling great, feeling healthy,” Aiyuk said. “It was a long recovery process, a long rehab process but I’m back to 100% and looking to get reinstated to the National Football League.”
“I appreciate all of you guys showing up,” Rosenhaus said. “Out of respect to you guys, we’ll make this brief. Obviously, Brandon is here to meet with the team. Fortunately, he’s feeling good physically. He’s healthy. He’s ready to get back to work. We don’t really have any comment about where he’s going to play. We’ll keep that between us and the Niners but obviously we are here with all the right intentions and I’ll let Brandon say a couple things right now.”
Aiyuk hasn’t played football in over 2 years — since he suffered a serious injury early in the 2024 regular season and spent the last year openly trying to be traded to the Washington Commanders.
49ers HC Kyle Shanahan Dismisses Aiyuk Talk
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was clear about how he felt about Aiyuk’s presence after Friday’s practice.
“I could care less,” Shanahan said.
After meeting with team officials — Aiyuk said they met with “the big bosses” and Rosenhaus said “to be continued” — they both went directly past the waiting media to the van to talk.
49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk Could Land on NFC Team Upon Release: Report