The Washington Commanders may think twice before adding, or attempting to add, Brandon Aiyuk to their roster given his one-sided social media feud with the San Francisco 49ers this summer, which has been draped in an uncomfortable weirdness and awkward insults flowing from the former All-Pro wide receiver toward his current franchise.
But as they often do in the NFL, talent and need have at least a reasonable chance of winning out over personality and behavioral concerns — especially given that Aiyuk can provide the Commanders with the exact player type their offense is missing.
On Sunday, June 14, Aiyuk again took to the internet and posted a video of himself dancing in front of the camera while clad in a white robe and boxer shorts.
The caption of the Instagram reel read “Coming to an end zone near 🫵 [you]!!”
NFL Insider Believes 49ers Close to Releasing Brandon Aiyuk into Free Agency
GettySan Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk on Sunday interpreted Aiyuk’s messaging as an indicator that the 49ers may soon be planning to release the wideout from his contract after failing all offseason to this point to drum up interest in a trade.
Factoring into Florio’s projection was a recent decision by Aiyuk to delete previous Instagram posts, in which he referred to 49ers management as “stupid” and “dumb,” among other, more derogatory and thinly-veiled insults.
“It’s hard not to wonder whether the 49ers have decided to abandon the effort to trade Aiyuk and to cut the cord in the coming days,” Florio wrote. “That would avoid the awkward dance of Aiyuk showing up to training camp and forcing his release.”
“The 49ers have proven their point. By refusing to release Aiyuk and holding out hope for a trade, they’ve wiped out his ability to get up to speed through his new team’s offseason program,” Florio continued. “At some point, rubbing Aiyuk’s nose in it takes the team’s eye off the bigger prize.”
Brandon Aiyuk Has Shown Overt Interest in Joining Commanders
GettySan Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Aiyuk, a second-team All-Pro in 2023 on the strength of 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven TDs, signed a four-year deal with the 49ers worth $120 million in 2024. However, he sustained a catastrophic knee injury early in that campaign that has sidelined him ever since.
The wideout most recently played a regular-season snap on October 20, 2024. Due to ongoing issues with the 49ers, including a lack of compliance with regards to his rehabilitation program, San Francisco voided $26 million in guarantees on Aiyuk’s contract in 2026 — a decision the wide receiver did not fight, as doing so might have further complicated his exit from the franchise.
Aiyuk, 28, has the Commanders as at least one of the team’s in his sights whenever the 49ers finally do cut ties with him for good, according to a report last week from John Keim of ESPN.
“He’s clearly, clearly begging to come to Washington — had a Commanders hat on,” Keim said June 8 while referencing one of Aiyuk’s IG videos. “By the time he gets here, it will be almost two years [since] he has played in a game. That’s tough to ask.”
Still, Aiyuk would join a receiver room headlined by Terry McLaurin, who battled injury issues last season and played in just 10 games. Beyond McLaurin, Luke McCaffrey and rookie Antonio Williams are the two most likely starters at WR2 and WR3 heading into 2026 if the Commanders don’t add Aiyuk, or anyone else, ahead of Week 1.
Commanders Get Encouraging Brandon Aiyuk Update, as 49ers Saga May Be Nearing End