Brandon Aiyuk has caused plenty of drama this offseason for the San Francisco 49ers, and it doesn’t look like that drama is ending anytime soon.
The receiver has posted multiple videos on social media over the past three weeks, and his favorite thing to do in those videos is taunt the 49ers. Aiyuk’s latest video came over the weekend, and it might have been his most interesting yet because he basically let the 49ers know where he wants to play next season — and it’s not with them.
“Go Commanders! Go Commanders! Go Commanders! Raise Hail! Take Command,” Aiyuk says in the video (you can see the full video here, but keep in mind it includes an NSFW word).
It’s not often — if ever — that you see a player under contract with one NFL team make a video where he’s actively doing another team’s chant, so this gives you a good idea of just how ugly things have gotten between Aiyuk and the 49ers.
As if that’s not enough, Aiyuk also shared a photo of former Washington quarterback Mark Rypien holding the Lombardi Trophy.
One reason Aiyuk would prefer to be in Washington is because the Commanders’ quarterback is Jayden Daniels, who just happens to be his former teammate at Arizona State. Aiyuk wants to reunite with his college quarterback, and it looks like he’s willing to create more drama until the 49ers either cut him or trade him.
The drama between Aiyuk and the 49ers has been boiling over for nearly two years.
How the drama started between Aiyuk and the 49ers
During the 2024 offseason, Aiyuk was looking to get a contract extension, and to say things got ugly would be an understatement. In June 2024, Aiyuk told Daniels that the 49ers didn’t want him back. That set the stage for a contentious negotiation that didn’t end until late August, when Aiyuk agreed to a four-year, $120 million deal, a contract that has essentially haunted the 49ers since the day it was signed.
After signing the deal, Aiyuk played in just seven games before tearing his ACL, MCL and meniscus in October 2024, and he hasn’t played for the 49ers since. Apparently, Aiyuk wasn’t showing up for his rehab work because, in July 2025, the 49ers voided his guaranteed money for the 2026 season. The decision to void the guarantees, which cost Aiyuk more than $25 million, didn’t become public until November 2025. The team said Aiyuk wasn’t meeting the requirements of his contract extension, which gave them the right to void the money.
The soap opera took another turn in December 2025 when Aiyuk was placed on the reserve/left squad list, officially ending his season.
In January, John Lynch put the final nail in the coffin for Aiyuk’s time in San Francisco. The 49ers general manager made it clear that Aiyuk had “played his last snap” for the franchise.
Earlier this offseason, there was some speculation that the 49ers might trade Aiyuk, but his trade value is almost zero at this point, so they’d likely have a tough time finding a partner. According to NFL Network, the Commanders don’t have much interest in a possible trade, but they would likely kick the tires on Aiyuk if he were released.
Of course, the only way he’s going to get released is if he actually shows up for practice. As long as he stays away from the team, the 49ers can continue to do nothing, so they have no reason to release him right now. That means this situation will likely remain in a holding pattern for at least another month — or until someone makes a trade offer San Francisco can’t refuse.
Aiyuk could look to force the issue by showing up when veterans report to training camp on July 25. At that point, the 49ers would probably release him rather than risk him getting injured while practicing with the team.
Aiyuk has been taunting the 49ers all offseason
The former first-round pick has stayed away from the team this offseason, but he has definitely made his presence known with a steady stream of social media videos.
In a video posted on June 7, Aiyuk essentially dared the 49ers to release him: “IF YOU SCARED JUST SAY DAT.”
“Man, stop running from the bill,” Aiyuk said. “The bill coming. You scared. They scared. Truth is, they scared. They know how I get. They gonna say, ‘Oh yeah, B.A., B.A., B.A. did this, B.A. did that. B.A. did, you know that s—, allegedly. Allegedly.’ But what they not gonna say is, ‘B.A. suck at football,’ cause they know how I get. And they running from that bill that’s on the way.”
Two days later, Aiyuk was at it again. On June 9, he said the 49ers were mad they gave him a $120 million extension.
“You want to know why they really mad, though?” Aiyuk said less than two weeks ago. “They mad ’cause they stupid. They dumb. They mad that they paid me $50 million in eight months and then voided my guarantees for [2026]. And I’m about to be on a new team in [2026]. They mad at themselves for real. They acting like they mad at me, but they stupid ass mad at themselves.”
He also called the team several vulgar names. Aiyuk eventually deleted the two videos, but as his latest social media post shows, he’s clearly not done taunting the team.
The 49ers don’t want Aiyuk on the roster, but they also don’t want to lose him for nothing. On Aiyuk’s end, he wants nothing to do with the 49ers, but he’s under contract, so he’s stuck with them until they make a decision about his future. He seems to be trying to force that decision by calling out the team on social media, but so far, it’s not working.
Since it will likely be at least another month before any of this gets resolved, there’s a good chance we’ll see a few more videos from Aiyuk between now and the start of San Francisco’s training camp.
