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San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch on Saturday laid bare the reality of the situation with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Lynch held a press conference late Saturday morning as the team's veterans reported for training camp. Aiyuk, who remains on the reserve/left squad list after a falling out between him and the team last season, was not among the players who reported.
While the questions persist about how the 49ers plan to handle Aiyuk, Lynch was blunt in his assessment of the ongoing saga that has spawned a rash of social media posts from the disgruntled receiver.
"I know you guys are going to have a lot of questions," Lynch said via the Athletic's Nicki Jhabvala. "Brandon is on a 'left squad' designation. As such, he's not on our 90-man roster. I'm personally, and we as an organization, are going to focus on the players that are here. So, I don't have anything to say on that, anything to add to that. We wish him well. We wish his family well."
The 49ers essentially hold the rights to have Aiyuk on their team, so while he's not counting toward their roster, he's also not a free agent because he's still under contract. Aiyuk will have to apply for reinstatement to the NFL if he's going to facilitate any action from the 49ers. If he applies for reinstatement and reports, the team would likely cut him right away and open the door for Aiyuk to fulfill his wish of playing for the Washington Commanders.
When pressed by the Athletic's Matt Barrows on Aiyuk's desire to play in Washington, Lynch repeated his stance of not paying attention to players who aren't on the 90-man roster.
"Matt, I understand you got to do your job," Lynch said via Jhabvala. "I understand. But as I said at the start, he's on that list. That means he's not on our roster. I'm going to focus on the guys that are and stand by what we've said already."
It sounds like the 49ers have put the ball in Aiyuk's court and don't plan on going back for it any time soon. Perhaps they get to the end of camp and release Aiyuk just to wash their hands of the situation. On the other hand, if they're not focused on him because he's not technically on their roster, then there may be no action until Aiyuk takes steps beyond social media posts to force it.
More 49ers: 3 key starters among 4 placed on PUP list by 49ers to start camp
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers GM delivers harsh reality in Brandon Aiyuk status update
Continue reading...
Lynch held a press conference late Saturday morning as the team's veterans reported for training camp. Aiyuk, who remains on the reserve/left squad list after a falling out between him and the team last season, was not among the players who reported.
While the questions persist about how the 49ers plan to handle Aiyuk, Lynch was blunt in his assessment of the ongoing saga that has spawned a rash of social media posts from the disgruntled receiver.
"I know you guys are going to have a lot of questions," Lynch said via the Athletic's Nicki Jhabvala. "Brandon is on a 'left squad' designation. As such, he's not on our 90-man roster. I'm personally, and we as an organization, are going to focus on the players that are here. So, I don't have anything to say on that, anything to add to that. We wish him well. We wish his family well."
The 49ers essentially hold the rights to have Aiyuk on their team, so while he's not counting toward their roster, he's also not a free agent because he's still under contract. Aiyuk will have to apply for reinstatement to the NFL if he's going to facilitate any action from the 49ers. If he applies for reinstatement and reports, the team would likely cut him right away and open the door for Aiyuk to fulfill his wish of playing for the Washington Commanders.
When pressed by the Athletic's Matt Barrows on Aiyuk's desire to play in Washington, Lynch repeated his stance of not paying attention to players who aren't on the 90-man roster.
"Matt, I understand you got to do your job," Lynch said via Jhabvala. "I understand. But as I said at the start, he's on that list. That means he's not on our roster. I'm going to focus on the guys that are and stand by what we've said already."
It sounds like the 49ers have put the ball in Aiyuk's court and don't plan on going back for it any time soon. Perhaps they get to the end of camp and release Aiyuk just to wash their hands of the situation. On the other hand, if they're not focused on him because he's not technically on their roster, then there may be no action until Aiyuk takes steps beyond social media posts to force it.
More 49ers: 3 key starters among 4 placed on PUP list by 49ers to start camp
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers GM delivers harsh reality in Brandon Aiyuk status update
Continue reading...
