The San Francisco 49ers are once again magically pulling off a Super Bowl push despite a ton of injuries in the 2025 season, with one of the biggest absences being that of star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Aiyuk has been away from the team for months, with no one hearing from the former star. Some of his teammates don't sound too optimistic about the chances of Aiyuk ever coming back to a team that is still one of the best in football without him.
In an appearance on Emmanuel Acho's "Speakeasy" show, Niners wide receiver Kendrick Bourne said that he is praying for Aiyuk to overcome whatever obstacles he may be facing. Bourne claims that none of his teammates have seen Aiyuk in the building for at least two months.
Bourne also took some time to joke about the now-infamous viral video where Aiyuk could be seen speeding past Levi's Stadium while AWOL from the team. It seems next to impossible to imagine a scenario where Aiyuk plays for San Francisco again, which is a massive shame.
49ers WR Kendrick Bourne said he hasn't seen Brandon Aiyuk in months
Aiyuk's contract extension, which pays him $30 million per season, is fast becoming one of the worst deals in the NFL today. After playing just seven games in the 2024 season due to injury and missing all of 2025, San Francisco is already preparing for a way in which they can offboard him.
To make matters worse, trading Aiyuk might be quite difficult for the 49ers. Not only is he a massive injury risk who has one of the more burdensome contracts in the NFL, but his production does not warrant such a hefty commitment. San Francisco may need to pull a Brock Osweiler and attack picks to entice a team to absorb that deal.
Despite all of that, San Francisco keeps chugging along. Despite not having Aiyuk on offense and both Nick Bosa and Fred Warner on the defense, the 49ers are just one win in Week 18 away from the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The offense has been clicking just fine without Aiyuk.
In the span of just a year and a half, Aiyuk has just about detonated his status as a premier wide receiver throughout the league. San Francisco appears ready to get this whole charade over with, but the true question is if Aiyuk realizes how his team feels about him.