On Friday, Brandon Aiyuk agreed to a four year, $120 million dollar extension to stay with the 49ers. This ended a saga that lasted nearly the whole 2024 offseason. Aiyuk requested a trade from the 49ers in July due to a contract stalemate.

Trade Rumors

Brandon Aiyuk made it clear that he wanted to sign an extension with the 9ers, but did not want to take a discount. This offseason, many of the top wide receivers in the league have signed massive extensions and Aiyuk believed he should be paid like the rest of them. He felt like the 49ers may not be willing to do this, so he asked to be traded.

Over the course of the past month and a half, plenty of rumors (some confirmed, others not) swirled. The Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, Washington Commanders, and Cleveland Browns were the confirmed teams heavily involved.

The 49ers granted Brandon Aiyuk permission to negotiate deals with these teams as they negotiated trade terms. None of the teams that met the 49ers asking price were able to come to terms with Aiyuk, though, and the teams that were willing to meet Aiyuk’s price could not meet the 49ers’ price.

The Deal

Brandon Aiyuk signed an extension worth up to $120 million over the course of the next four years. The contract includes $76 million guaranteed. It also makes Aiyuk the fifth highest paid wide receiver in the league (tied with Tyreek Hill).

This deal was reportedly the same deal that has been on the table since August 12. In the past weeks, Aiyuk has been negotiating with these other teams, but ended up sticking with the team that drafted him. It seems like Aiyuk wanted to stay in San Francisco and the 49ers made it clear that they wanted to keep him around.

Fantasy Impact

The implications for fantasy football are huge. Aiyuk is a number one receiver and is now paid like one. That does not mean that he will have the targets that many other numbers ones around the league get. His 105 targets last year put him outside of the top 25, but he was still able to produce WR1 numbers.

The 9ers return most of the team that they brought to the Super Bowl last year. Aiyuk has to compete with Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and others for touches and receptions. This does limit his upside. Even with a capped upside, Aiyuk remains right in WR1 territory, both in dynasty and redraft formats, with a consistent target share in a very efficient offense.

Now that Brandon Aiyuk has agreed to this extension with the 49ers, his dynasty value is clear. With a potential trade, Aiyuk was looking at a potentially higher target share, but in a less efficient offense. The 49ers consistently have one of the top offenses in the league and Aiyuk is an important part of it for now, and for the future.

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