It feels like we’ve been getting daily updates about Brandon Aiyuk wanting to play for the Washington Commanders, despite being under contract for the San Francisco 49ers.
The latest post from Aiyuk’s Instagram on Wednesday said, “Cut me today, and I’ll sign with the Commanders tomorrow.” That is the kind of statement that will have Aiyuk on the 49ers past Christmas.
Former 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman broke down how we got here on his podcast. Sherman pushed back on Lesean McCoy sticking up for Aiyuk:
“I don’t know, Shady. I don’t know if I agree with that. They paid him $30 million to catch the football. They paid him $30 million to show up and play receiver for the 49ers. Not be owned. Not be anything. It’s goods and services. You get paid for your services. You have to provide the services. You don’t just get to get paid and say, ‘Hmm, I’m not going to play receiver. I’m just gonna chill.’
I’m just going to do whatever I want. You don’t get to just get paid and say, ‘Hey, I’m not going to rehab with the team.’ Which is fine. Which is perfectly fine. Many players have done it.
But if you do that, you have to show up four days earlier than everybody else. Four days. If everybody else has to show up on the 23rd, you have to show up on the 19th. You know why? Because the team that invested $30 million a year in you, wants to evaluate you and see how your rehab has gone. They want to do MRIs, they want to do teesting, and they want to do it at a time where 90 other players aren’t there, so they can really focus on you. So all the doctors can show you true attention and focus, and give you the care and understanding that you need, so they can truly understand where you’re at in your process.
Not because they want to screw Brandon Aiyuk. No, you haven’t rehabbed here. We have know idea where you are. You haven’t updated us at all. So if you can show up four days early, which is protocol, standard for anybody who hasn’t rehabbed at the facility–which is perfectly fine. He didn’t do that. So they fined him every day he didn’t show up. Which is four days, $50,000 a day.
And then he gave them an avenue to void his guarantees. That’s what happened. So now, instead of showing up four days early and getting the evaluation, getting the physical, doing everything you have to do, going about your business. If he went about his business, he’d be $30 million richer. They’d be on the hook, even if he didn’t want to play for the 49ers.
He’d be like, ‘Hey, I showed up, did what I needed to do, was a pro about it. Get me out of here. Trade me, please. Even if I have to renegoitate and rehash my contract out with the next team. I don’t want to be here.’
I think that could’ve happened. But when you don’t show up, and everything is a fight. You don’t rehab. You put yourself behind the 8-ball, and it’s hard to get out of that.
And so now we’re in this situation where everyone is like ‘They shouldn’t just hold onto him.’ Well the’yre going to do what’s best for them. They’re going to do what’s best in terms of the opponents they’re going to see, how they’re going to play this season, cap situation, everything.
And at some point, they’ll release him. If he shows up and gets reinstated and forces their hand, I’m sure he’ll get released that day. And maybe the Washington Commanders will pick him up. And AP, Adam Peters, who was with San Francisco when they drafted BA is gonna pick him up, and it’s gonna be a great relationship.
But once you get to this place, it’s hard to get out of this mode. But once you get to this place, what happens when the ball doesn’t go his way a couple times? When things aren’t going his way? Are they doubling him? Does he get frustrated? It can go real bad, real fast.”
Sherman is speaking like an athlete in the know. Meanwhile, Aiyuk’s latest post on Thursday morning:
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