Last season during his extensive contract holdout, San Francisco 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk was the subject of endless trade chatter - however likely or unlikely those actions were actually being put in motion internally.
The 49ers eventually signed their star pass-catcher to a four-year $120 million contract to hopefully put all parties at ease - those being Aiyuk, the organization, and the fans.
Since Aiyuk's unfortunate ACL injury in Week 7 of the 2024 season, however, waves of trade speculation and rumored disputes between the player and team have resurfaced.
Now Aiyuk is putting that noise on blast. Or ... at least a portion of the noise.
On his personal YouTube channel, Aiyuk responded to comments about the trade rumors that spawned during the season right after his surgery:
"They was talking bout trading me while I was off percocets /muscle relaxers and peeing in a cup by my bed! Couldn’t walk for 10 weeks ain’t nobody trading for me 🤣💀"
Not only was Aiyuk tied to a long-term (and high-dollar) contract, but he was injured for the rest of the season. It's an easy timeline to follow that explains why he was not traded.
That thought process holds today as Aiyuk is still inactive from offseason workouts, with his expected return to the field well beyond the start of the season.
While he was poking some humor about no team pursuing him in a trade, this could be another way of him telling fans to knock off the recent speculation, as well.
Aiyuk being able to laugh at his situation should be taken as a sign of positivity to not only quieting trade talks, but to giving an optimistic report of his recovery and mental state.
When healthy, Aiyuk is a fantastic receiver who is plenty capable of being an elite offense's No. 1 option. When he isn't, of course, trade-hungry sharks will subside.
If Aiyuk can return near the midway point of the 2025 season, barring health across the rest of the roster, San Francisco will be poised to return to championship contention like they did in 2023. Last season's unfortunate injury fate, to Aiyuk and others, lessened their odds of making the playoffs - let alone another Super Bowl.
Any possibility of a trade at that point must be determined by numerous factors. First, how he performs back on the field.
The indication is that Aiyuk and his contract will stay in the Bay Area. He is the last major piece working back to full health on this explosive Niners offense that, once he returns, is expected to wreak havoc.
He is well past the peeing-in-a-cup phase of his rehab ...
And if you ask him, he's hoping we are done with the trade rumors, too.