Brandon Aiyuk owes 49ers $13M as NFL return comes with complications

Brandon Aiyuk’s return to the NFL comes with several complications.

The estranged 49ers wide receiver is set to return to the team facility Friday afternoon, but the reunion is sure to be awkward. The latest report states Aiyuk owes the 49ers roughly $13 million in bonus forfeiture, according to NFL insider Tom Pelissero.

The 49ers paid Brandon Aiyuk a $23 million signing bonus in 2024 and a $22.9 million option bonus in 2025, which totals $45.9 million. Aiyuk officially left the team about three-fourths of the way through the 2025 season, thus a 28% bonus forfeiture is owed.

The NFL Management Council and the NFL Players Association are attempting to resolve the situation. The sides could reach an agreement to pay back the money or it could go to arbitration.

Regardless, the situation is complicated and may take time to find a solution. This muddles Aiyuk’s push to play football again, and Pelissero notes that the money is a “a potential complication in his efforts to secure his release by reporting to the facility Friday.”

The 49ers have not unveiled their plans in the Aiyuk saga, but could allow him to join the team, release or trade him. Additionally, the 28-year-old has an outstanding warrant for his arrest in Santa Clara, further complicating the entire situation.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan didn’t completely shut the door on an Aiyuk reunion, saying: “There’s no absolutes in life, so.” But the severed relationship certainly comes at a cost for both sides.

Aiyuk and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, will report to the 49ers’ facility at 3 p.m. Friday, which should propel the next chapter into the ongoing saga between the receiver and the team.

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