Kyle Shanahan breaks silence on his ‘subtle’ interaction with Brandon Aiyuk amid heavy trade rumors

When Brandon Aiyuk missed practice again on August 2, head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about his on-field embrace with the WR.

Kyle Shanahan breaks silence on his ‘subtle’ interaction with Brandon Aiyuk amid heavy trade rumors

Kyle Shanahan on his warm interaction with Brandon Aiyuk (Via Imago/X)

Brandon Aiyuk has been seeking a contract extension since February this year, however, his situation remains the same as before. The only progress so far has been the trade rumors swirling around the internet, but that too hasn’t been confirmed yet. 

Amidst the contract standoff, the star wide receiver has also been holding out from the training camp after missing the mandatory minicamp and imposing a fine on himself. That’s why his appearance at the practice session on July 31 came as a surprise to everyone, but seeing the way the San Francisco 49ers greeted him, it appeared nothing had changed. 

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As Aiyuk arrived at the practice session last week, he greeted General Manager John Lynch with a handshake before moving to his head coach Kyle Shanahan, and the two were spotted sharing a warm hug on the field. This led to speculations that both the 49ers and Aiyuk might be close to a resolution in the contract dispute. 

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Kyle Shanahan dismisses Brandon Aiyuk’s contract resolution speculations 

When the 49ers’ No. 2 receiver again didn’t show up for the practice on Friday, August 2, head coach Shanahan was asked about his friendly on-field embrace with Aiyuk during his cameo appearance. But he shattered fans’ hopes for the resolution by saying that it was nothing to do with his contract situation, they just greet each other in that way. 

Kyle Shanahan and Brandon Aiyuk
Kyle Shanahan and Brandon Aiyuk (Via Imago)
That’s just usually how we greet each other, honestly. You guys would see maybe a lot more hugs in here if we had a film for you guys, but we’re not on ‘Hard Knocks.’ We saw him on the field. He hadn’t been on the field a lot. We walked by each other and it’s usually how we greet each other — bro hug. Nothing more, nothing less. Thank you.
Kyle Shanahan said on Friday

The Niners head coach also refused to give any updates on the ongoing contract negotiations with Aiyuk. Meanwhile, NFL insiders and multiple other sources have been claiming that the team has been approached by several NFL teams with respect to Aiyuk’s availability. 

The two teams whose names have been put forward as potential landing spots for Aiyuk are the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots, but that’s the case when the 49ers are actually exploring this option. And till now, there haven’t been any official updates regarding the ongoing negotiations.

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