George Kittle says he’s not concerned with Brandon Aiyuk contract negations with San Francisco 49ers
One of the stories of the offseason for the NFC Champions revolves the contract talks one of their most productive players last year, Brandon Aiyuk.
The San Francisco 49ers have flirted with Super Bowl twice in the last five years, but have come up short on both occasions. Now they have a storm potentially brewing with their top receiver from last year, Brandon Aiyuk, who is being very vocal about the lack of a contract extension from the Niners.
Aiyuk vents on TikTok
Aiyuk is hoping to pen a new contract with the team that drafted him back in 2020, but negotiations have been bumpy. He just finished up his fourth season with the Niners and proved to be one Brock Purdy’s favorite targets on an offense stacked full of weapons.
He had a career high 1,342 yards last season and scored seven touchdowns while making a couple of catches in big moments late in the season. Now he thinks it’s time for the Niners to reward him for the work he has put in on and off the field, but by the looks of it, the former Arizona State Sun Devil is getting frustrated by the Niners hesitation to offer him a new deal.
Aiyuk added fuel to the fire when he posted a TikTok of a conversations between him and former college teammate and now Washington Commanders QB Jayden Daniels. In the video, the pass catcher says “They (the 49ers) don’t want me back. I swear.”
Kittle has seen this before
Niners tight end George Kittle was on The Rich Eisen Show early Thursday, and he told the talk show host that he thinks San Francisco is going through their usual motions. “I think, if you look at my career, being a 49er, and the way most of the contracts have gone -- I didn’t get signed until the second week of training camp, Deebo (Samuel) was pretty late,” Kittle said. “(Nick) Bosa) was the first week of the season. That’s just how business is done out there. I’m not in the meetings. I have no idea. I actually go out of my way to not talk to anybody going through contract negotiations, so when people ask me questions, I’m like: I have absolutely no idea.
Aiyuk is entering the final year of his contract, and is hoping to get an extension before the season kicks off, but like Kittle says it may be a waiting game. Niners general manager John Lynch told reporters “Our wish is he is here for the rest of his career,” before the NFL Draft in April.
“But I’m not concerned about it. Aiyuk’s a phenomenal football player who’s a big part of our offense, and he’s one of the most complete receivers that I’ve ever played with. So I’m gonna assume that Aiyuk’s gonna be on our team by the time the season starts.”