While Aiyuk has expressed a desire to remain with the team that drafted him in the first round in 2020, the 49ers appear unwilling to increase their offer at this time, content with learning how far Aiyuk's camp is willing to wait.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk believes he understands the 49ers' mindset during these prolonged negotiations. Despite no formal trade request from Aiyuk's camp, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo recently reported that both sides are "no closer to a deal."
"There's a game of semantics going on between the 49ers and Aiyuk," Florio explains. "Even if he hasn't asked to be traded, we believe his agent was given permission to seek a trade before the draft."
Teams reached out to the 49ers during the draft to inquire about Aiyuk. However, these discussions failed to produce any deals, as teams were reluctant to meet both the 49ers' demands and Aiyuk's perceived salary expectations.
"The goal, we also believe, was to let Aiyuk realize that no one else was willing to give him the $30 million per year he reportedly has been seeking," Florio continued. "Ultimately, no one was willing to give Aiyuk what he wants in a contract and what the 49ers want in a trade. Otherwise, a trade would have happened."
The next critical deadline is the start of training camp. Aiyuk and his veteran teammates are scheduled to report to the 49ers on July 23. He missed the team's mandatory minicamp last month, subjecting himself to fines. More fines will accrue if he opts to send a signal by staying away as training camp begins.
Other teams will likely keep a close eye on the situation in Santa Clara, wondering if a continued stalemate might force the 49ers to lower their asking price for Aiyuk, potentially increasing the chances of acquiring the offensive weapon.
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