Make no mistake—Aiyuk and Williams are missed in that locker room. Players are becoming accustomed to this type of situation, having witnessed similar holdouts with defensive end Nick Bosa last year and wide receiver Deebo Samuel the year before.
"They bring a lot of energy, a lot of juice, a lot of talent," cornerback Charvarius Ward said of Aiyuk and Williams. "Everybody knows Trent was a captain, Hall of Famer, the big dog on the team. Damn near everybody's scared of him. But yeah, we miss him a little bit. But somebody's got to step up and be a captain and replace what was missing with those guys not here."
The 49ers embrace a "next man up" mentality, refusing to make excuses and preparing for opponents with the players they have available. Head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted this week that he's preparing the team to face the New York Jets without Aiyuk and Williams in the lineup. After all, that's all he can do at this point.
"We definitely want to have those guys here," Ward said. "I know they feel like they deserve something more, but we just got to go with the punches, and whoever's here, they got to step up and ball out. It's going to be hard to replace those guys, but it's got to be a team effort, group effort."
Despite the offseason distractions in recent years, the 49ers have still enjoyed success, reaching two NFC Championship Games and a Super Bowl over the past two seasons.
"I think [GM] John [Lynch] and [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan], the owner, they know what they're doing," Ward concluded. "So, hopefully, they get it resolved soon, and we can get pushing and have a great year."
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