49ers 2020 NFL Draft: 3 reasons Brandon Aiyuk is a schematic fit

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Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk #2 of the Arizona State Sun Devils (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

The San Francisco 49ers made Arizona State wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk their second first-round pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, and Aiyuk offers some pretty exciting traits.

As a former college wide receiver himself, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan probably values pass catchers in his offensive system more than the average play-caller. Since he took the Niners’ head coaching position in 2017, the 49ers have devoted substantial resources in finding the right group of receivers for Shanahan’s playbook.

In addition to previous years’ signings of Pierre Garcon, Marquise Goodwin and Jordan Matthews in free agency, as well as trading for Emmanuel Sanders last season, the team had drafted five wideouts since 2017: Trent Taylor (2017), Dante Pettis (2018), Richie James (2018), Deebo Samuel (2019) and Jalen Hurd (2019).

In 2020, the 49ers added two more receivers via the NFL Draft in Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings. As a perfect fit for Shanahan’s offensive scheme, first-round pick Aiyuk has a chance to the most productive out of all of Shanahan’s hand-picked receivers.

At 6-foot-0 and 205 pounds, Aiyuk has average size for the position, and his 4.5 40-yard time put him outside the top 20 among other 2020 wide receiver prospects at the NFL Combine.

None of this matters to Shanahan.

After all, Shanahan does not ask his receivers to consistently win battles for 50/50 balls, or frequently run straight-line vertical routes to stretch the defense. Instead, Shanahan’s offense creates mismatches for playmakers through play action, motion and misdirection, asking his receivers to create quick separation and create yards after the catch.

Speed matters, of course. But in Shanahan’s system, elusiveness and field vision matter more. For example, Samuel ran a nearly identical time (4.48) in the 40-yard dash at his combine, also outside the top 20 in his class, but ranked in the top 15 in the league in YAC last season.

Aiyuk looks to be the next YAC contributor on the 49ers next to Samuel and tight end George Kittle, who finished sixth in football last year in YAC, and has the exact skill set to excel in Shanahan’s system.

These three traits will allow Aiyuk to be a dynamic playmaker in Shanahan’s offensive scheme.