The breakup move is just the latest in a tumultuous tapestry woven between San Francisco and Aiyuk, who has been on the physically unable to perform list this entire season while recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in Week 7 of 2024.
With other injured Niners returning, Shanahan appears to have told reporters weekly that Aiyuk is unlikely to open his practice window for a short period of time. As the regular season quickly draws to a close, this latest development provides important context.
Aiyuk was a first-round pick in 2020 by the 49ers and was a solid contributor in San Francisco from the start. He then broke out in 2022 with his first 1,000-yard receiving season, amassing 1,015 and eight touchdowns on a career-high 78 receptions. In 2023, he had 75 catches for 1,342 yards and seven scores, after which he was involved in a controversial season negotiating an extension that included a trade request, a deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers that fell through and a suspension that lasted through the 2024 preseason.
Then, just before last season, Aiyuk and the 49ers made a deal.
The good times were short-lived — first because Aiyuk struggled to 53.2 yards per game without a score in seven contests, and then because of the aforementioned knee injury that cut short his campaign.
Despite the extension, San Francisco was reportedly open to trading Aiyuk in March.
That never happened, as the 49ers instead held off on moving fellow wide receiver Deebo Samuel, but here they are again at an inflection point.
Time will tell if cooler heads prevail once again, or if the 49ers and Aiyuk finally call it quits.