Even with all the comings and goings on the 49ers’ roster, this offseason has been all about wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
And it will continue to be that way until there is some resolution.
There is one week before the draft and there has yet to be any credible information to suggest Aiyuk will be heading elsewhere in a trade.
But things can change in a hurry, so it’s too early to completely rule that out, either.
The 49ers would listen if another team wanted to pursue a trade with Aiyuk. And that team would have to pay twice for him.
Any team interested in Aiyuk would have to part ways with a valuable draft pick (or two) while also providing Aiyuk with the kind of lucrative, multi-year contract that he is seeking this offseason from the 49ers.
Would it make sense for that team? Would it make sense for the 49ers?
Of course, Aiyuk is not taking part in the 49ers’ offseason program, which opened Monday at the team’s training facility in Santa Clara. He can be expected to not take part in any voluntary activities until the sides come together on a new contract.
And if history serves as a predictor, it could take a while.
George Kittle, Fred Warner and Deebo Samuel signed their second contracts with the team right around the opening of training camp in late July.
And Nick Bosa got his big deal last year in the middle of the week leading up to the first game of the regular season.
Lynch recently told Bay Area reporters there were a lot of different scenarios for Aiyuk. He did not rule out the possibility that no long-term extension is signed before the start of the season and Aiyuk could play the final year of his contract at the scheduled price of $14.1 million.
“We have a good history of working with the guys we want to get done, and it takes two sides,” Lynch said. “So can we do that? We’ll see.”
