Brandon Aiyuk had a good run as a San Francisco 49er. But that run is coming to an end at the end of the season. You can blame the Dallas Cowboys for that.
The Niners’ rival, in a late-August bit of desperation, signed their hold-out, All-Pro wide receiver, CeeDee Lamb, to a market-busting four-year, $136 million deal on Monday. The contract has, reportedly, $100 million in guarantees. It’s an absurd deal for a receiver who takes the majority of his snaps from the slot, but what’s new? The entire offseason has been a string of absurd deals for wide receivers — even those who don’t actually line up wide.
Lamb’s new contract is, obviously, good news for Aiyuk, who does, in fact, line up on the outside of formations. The rate for Aiyuk’s services on a new contract jumped significantly on Monday. So unless the Niners wide receiver has a change of heart and is interested in taking a significant discount to stay in the Bay, he’ll certainly command a nine-figure contract, with guarantees not far behind that mark.
But he won’t be receiving that deal from the 49ers. San Francisco simply cannot afford to keep up with the inflation of the wide receiver market. Not when they’re paying Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Javon Hargrave, and soon Trent Williams top-of-the-market rates.
Not when their quarterback is poised to command a new contract that will pay him upwards of $60 million a season in a few months. Because the 49ers have spent the .