Aiyuk reveals his Super Bowl concerns played a role in 49ers’ frustration originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Brandon Aiyuk is one of quarterback Brock Purdy’s best offensive players, but the 49ers wide receiver felt underutilized during San Francisco’s last trip to the Super Bowl.
While Aiyuk is still negotiating what could be a lucrative contract extension with the 49ers, he recently admitted to feeling frustrated after San Francisco’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII due to a lack of targets, specifically leading him to make a puzzling post on social media after the game.
“Absolutely, it is,” Aiyuk said on Friday’s episode of “The Pivot” podcast when asked if his use of the Super Bowl led him to “Remember what got you there” the day after the big game ” posted on his Instagram story. .
“I’m leaving the Super Bowl and I feel like you throw the ball at me five, six times a game all year long. I went 100 percent.” [yards in a game] six or seven times this year. I turned 70 catches into 1,400 [yards]. And then here we are, talking about getting paid, getting paid top dollar in this market, but I don’t know. The Super Bowl was difficult. We’re past the Super Bowl.”
Aiyuk caught three of his six targets for 49 receiving yards in the Super Bowl. He had three receptions and one touchdown in the NFC Championship Game against the Detroit Lions, and three receptions in the divisional round against the Green Bay Packers after being targeted eight and six times, respectively.
The wideout was targeted six or fewer times in eight games during the 2023 NFL regular season, which equates to half of the 49ers’ games.
Still, it’s reasonable that Aiyuk would want a more prominent role in the biggest game of the season, especially after he helped secure San Francisco’s NFC title with his now-famous “ladybug catch” at Levi’s Stadium. His production leading up to the Super Bowl, where he had his second straight 1,000-yard receiving season, certainly played a big role in the 49ers’ chances of pursuing another Vince Lombardi Trophy.
And as he said, Aiyuk has moved on from the Super Bowl loss. But it’s clear that the emotions of that experience have forced him to view his career — and how much he makes — through a different lens.
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