Aiyuk says he’ll sign with Commanders if 49ers grant his wish for a release

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Disgruntled receiver Brandon Aiyuk said he would sign immediately with the Washington Commanders if the San Francisco 49ers grant his wish and release him.

Aiyuk is currently on the reserve/left squad list after he stopped showing up late last season as he rehabilitates a knee injury that has sidelined him since October 2024. Aiyuk wants to be released, but the Niners have shown no urgency to make a move even though general manager John Lynch has said he doesn’t expect Aiyuk to play for the team again.

“Tell them boys cut me today and I’ll sign with the Commanders tomorrow,” Aiyuk said on social media Wednesday.

The Commanders haven’t commented on Aiyuk’s status while he remains under contract to San Francisco and haven’t indicated that they would sign him if he becomes available.

Aiyuk signed a four-year, $120 million extension with San Francisco just before the start of the 2024 season following a lengthy contract “hold in” that kept him out of practice that summer.

Aiyuk played seven games and caught 25 passes that season before going down with a season-ending knee injury and the acrimony between the sides only increased. The 49ers voided $27 million guaranteed in Aiyuk’s contract for 2026 last summer because he failed to participate in meetings and other team activities.

Aiyuk then left the team late in the season and has not talked to coach Kyle Shanahan or Lynch since then, communicating only through social media messages, calling the team “stupid” for paying him so much money.

Aiyuk could put pressure on the 49ers to make a decision if he shows up when the 49ers report to training camp on July 25. Until he reports, the 49ers can keep him on the reserve list without him counting to the salary cap or the roster limits.

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Aiyuk has three years remaining on the four-year, $120 million extension he signed last year, including a nearly $25 million option bonus due before the start of this season. But he now has no guaranteed money remaining and won’t be owed anything unless he reports to the team.

The 28-year-old Aiyuk has 294 catches for 4,305 yards and 25 TDs since being drafted in the first round in 2020.

Aiyuk recently had an arrest warrant issued by Santa Clara County on a misdemeanor charge of exhibition of speeding in response to a video Aiyuk posted to social media last December that appeared to show him speeding on the road in front of Levi’s Stadium.