It appears as if disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk's time with the San Francisco 49ers will come to an apex this Friday after he reportedly filled out his reinstatement paperwork and plans on heading to the team's facility to prompt next steps.
This ultimately forces the Niners' hand, namely removing him from the reserve/left squad list where he found himself last season after going AWOL in the wake of his 2024 knee injury.
Amid that span, Aiyuk made all kinds of overtures about getting out from San Francisco's grasp and joining the Washington Commanders, playing with his collegiate friend and teammate, quarterback Jayden Daniels.
Heck, Aiyuk even bought a home not far from the Commanders' practice facility.
Unfortunately for the receiver, though, there are plenty of reasons to suspect Washington will have zero interest in grabbing him when (and if) he becomes a true free agent. Not only did Aiyuk's offseason social media rants cloud his reputation, including ones specifically aimed at Daniels, but recent reports also suggest the Commanders aren't looking to add him anyway.
ESPN says Commanders aren't interested in Brandon Aiyuk
Washington's loss of star wide receiver Terry McLaurin earlier this season could've opened the door to the possibility of adding Aiyuk, at least once he was reinstated and was subsequently released by the 49ers.
But ESPN's Dan Graziano reported the opposite shortly after news broke of Aiyuk's imminent return to the Niners' facility:
The Commanders have looked around for wide receiver help at the trade deadline, but I do not expect them to be in the market for Brandon Aiyuk, who recently hired a new agent to help orchestrate his long-overdue exit from San Francisco. Washington was the team many had connected with Aiyuk during last offseason's drama. He played with Commanders QB Jayden Daniels at Arizona State years ago, and he referenced his desire to play for the Commanders in several social media posts over the summer. But he said a lot of other things in those social media posts that turned teams off, and specifically some things about Daniels and his mother that make it unlikely a reunion ends up happening there.
Yikes.
Perhaps Aiyuk should've thought twice before hitting "send" after recording those anti-Daniels videos over the offseason. While they seemed to have little consequence at the time, those posts are certainly coming back to haunt the embattled wide receiver now.
At least as far as his desire to play in Washington is concerned.
True, there are several other teams in need of wide receiver help, including San Francisco, although burying the proverbial ax in that relationship seems all but impossible. The Kansas City Chiefs, Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are all teams that could use some additional receiving reinforcements, and it might actually suit Aiyuk more if there's a bigger market for his services.
Of course, he's going to have to prove his health and willingness to play, simultaneously answering whatever questions arise after the offseason's odd social media behavior.
However, at least based on Graziano's report, Washington has no interest in asking him those questions.
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