NFL insider predicts Aiyuk’s annual salary in new 49ers contract originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Brandon Aiyuk’s future with the 49ers remains unclear less than three months before the 2024 NFL season begins.
If both sides ultimately agree to a contract extension to keep the wide receiver in the Bay after next season, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated predicted what the numbers could look like.
“I think so,” Breer responded in his recent Mailbag article when asked if he believes Aiyuk and the 49ers will make a deal (h/t 49ers Webzone ). “My friend Mike Silver of the San Francisco Chronicle has an offer from the San Francisco 49ers for a new-money average of $26 million per year. I feel like this is close to where they will have to lock up Brandon Aiyuk, who they really appreciate and love.
“I think the final number, if I had to guess, will end up being $29 million per year, which would put Aiyuk past Jaylen Waddle of the Miami Dolphins and Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Detroit Lions, and still behind the Minnesota Vikings. ‘Justin Jefferson quite a bit (which would be understandable).”
Breer further noted that if the 49ers extend Aiyuk, teams around the league will stop calling the Arizona State product and start inquiring about their other star, Deebo Samuel.
For now, though, the focus is on Aiyuk, who remains in a standoff with San Francisco during the team’s offseason program.
Aiyuk was noticeably absent from both the voluntary OTAs and mandatory minicamp as contract negotiations continue, and there is no indication he will be anywhere near the team facility until a resolution is reached.
Last week, Silver appeared on KNBR’s “Papa & Lund” and said he “heard their offer is in the neighborhood of $26 million.” That same day, however, Aiyuk’s wide receiver coach and former NFL receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh joined 95.7 The Game’s “Willard and Dibs” that Aiyuk would have already agreed to terms with if the 49ers offered him the same deal as St. Brown’s four-year deal of $120. million contract.
Aiyuk has racked up over 1,000 receiving yards in each of the last two seasons and has made big leaps in each campaign.
There’s no telling what the numbers will look like — or what the outcome of all this will even be — but for now, Breer, like several other football enthusiasts posing as NFL agents and executives, will be happy to speculate.
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