Brandon Aiyuk is not even pretending anymore.
The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver posted two photos to his Instagram story on Saturday, both of which featured him wearing a Washington Commanders hat. The second post had the caption “the cap, the gig is up,” which is not exactly subtle.
This is becoming a pattern. Aiyuk has been linked to the Commanders since last summer. He was college teammates with Jayden Daniels at Arizona State. The Commanders need a real WR1 to pair with Daniels, and Aiyuk’s connection to the quarterback is the kind of thing that makes general managers pay attention.
The 49ers have been the holdup. John Lynch and that front office have been holding out for a trade return that makes sense, and at this point it is hard to see what that looks like. Aiyuk has not played since 2024 after suffering a torn ACL and MCL. He is also dealing with a recent arrest warrant for speeding. His leverage is not what it was a year ago.
San Francisco has a few options. They can release him and eat the cap hit. They can keep him on the roster and hope he plays his way back into market value. Or they can take whatever return the Commanders are offering and move on. None of those options is great.
The Commanders are the team most clearly motivated to make a deal. They already have a quarterback in Daniels who is heading into his third year and looking to take the next step. Adding a familiar receiver who, when healthy, has been a legitimate No. 1 option would accelerate that timeline.
The question is whether Aiyuk can stay healthy. His 2023 season was his peak, with 75 catches for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns. That production earned him second-team All-Pro honors and a massive extension. The injury history since then is the entire reason this deal has not happened already.
Aiyuk’s social media activity is going to keep this story alive until either the trade gets done or training camp opens. If he reports to 49ers camp without a deal, that creates an awkward situation in the locker room. If a deal gets done before that, the Commanders get their WR1 and the 49ers get some kind of return.
The most likely outcome at this point is a trade. Aiyuk’s hints are getting louder. The Commanders have not stopped calling. And San Francisco does not have a real path to keeping him without significant tension.
If you are betting on a landing spot, bet on Washington. Aiyuk is telling everyone where he wants to go. Eventually, somebody at 49ers headquarters is going to have to listen.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
