Overview
- On Saturday, Aiyuk posted a 3½‑minute YouTube rant that repeated attacks on 49ers GM John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan, declared he will not report to the team and again signaled a desire to join the Washington Commanders.
- The 49ers placed Aiyuk on the reserve/left‑squad list and voided roughly $24–27 million in remaining guarantees after he stopped participating in team‑directed rehab for the October 2024 knee injury.
- Aiyuk said he fired agent Ryan Williams, but NFLPA records continue to list Williams as his certified representative, which means the termination may not be official in the union database.
- League insiders say teams will not pursue a trade without current medical access and that Aiyuk’s public campaign has made him “essentially untradeable,” raising the prospect he could miss the 2026 season or sign for minimal pay if released.
- With training camp approaching, the standoff turns on narrow procedural moves — a reinstatement petition to the commissioner, medical clearance and whether the 49ers will trade or keep his roster rights — and the dispute could shape both Aiyuk’s career and teams’ willingness to sign players who publicly attack employers.