49ers-Brandon Aiyuk contract drama still ‘stuck in the mud’

The Brandon Aiyuk-49ers saga doesn’t appear anywhere close to over. 

NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo said Wednesday that the two sides remain at an impasse with just over a week to go before the 2024 NFL season opener. 

“I can’t tell you how many times I thought this Aiyuk thing was going to be resolved one way or another, whether it was a trade or a contract extension,” Garafolo said on “Good Morning Football.” “And we are still stuck in the mud here on Brandon Aiyuk.

“… The understanding was that at this point he would practice, so we’re gonna have to see if he’s on the field (Wednesday) with the San Francisco 49ers. But, again, no closer to an extension or a trade there than we were the last couple of weeks.”

Garafolo added that 49ers star offensive lineman Trent Williams could carry his holdout into the regular season. 

The Aiyuk situation has been one of the biggest stories of the NFL offseason as the 26-year-old looks for an extension on par with other big-money deals handed out to wide receivers in recent years. 

In recent weeks, Aiyuk has been tied in trade rumors to the Steelers, Browns and Patriots — among others.

Over a week ago, 49ers general manager John Lynch said the team felt “urgency” to solve the ongoing Aiyuk dilemma. 

“It’s been a long, arduous, hard process, a hard journey,” Lynch, according to ESPN. “We started this early and for whatever reason haven’t been able to get it across the finish line. That’s been frustrating.”

Aiyuk, a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, is slated to make $14.2 million in 2024 on the last year of his rookie contract. 

He recorded a career-high 1,342 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 2023.