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Aiyuk-49ers saga hits inflection point as ‘hold-in’ persists originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SANTA CLARA — The Brandon Aiyuk saga might have hit an inflection point on Wednesday.
Despite suggestions that this was the day that Aiyuk would end his “hold in,” nothing changed when the 49ers took the practice field.
And now, this is when things could really get interesting.
General manager John Lynch made it known that the expectation was that Aiyuk would practice because the 49ers medical staff cleared him.
Earlier in the day, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reported that there was an “understanding” that Aiyuk would practice.
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Aiyuk never told him he was going to practice, but he said he was hopeful Aiyuk would be on the field.
Now, it looks as if the 49ers are ready to play hardball.
Up to this point, everybody knew and understood that Aiyuk was not likely to practice until his contract situation got resolved. Shanahan even played along, saying that Aiyuk had “soreness.”
But the entire tone changed Wednesday, now that the 49ers have their 53-man roster set and are beginning preparations to face the New York Jets in Week 1 of the 2024 NFL regular season.
Before practice on Wednesday, both Lynch and Shanahan said they would not address the hypothetical situation of discipline if Aiyuk did not show up to practice later in the day.
Aiyuk did not show up, so it is no longer a hypothetical situation.
Aiyuk’s agent, Ryan Williams, did not immediately respond to an NBC Sports Bay Area request to comment on the reason for Aiyuk’s absence from practice.
Aiyuk had been seen during practices periodically this summer. He often watched from the sideline or went viral with his hand-slaps and daps of Lynch and Shanahan.
Before Aiyuk officially was a no-show at practice on Wednesday, Lynch suggested the relationship between team and player still could be salvaged.
“I’ve seen these things look dire before, and those things can quickly…
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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/aiyuk-49ers-saga-hits-inflection-231914908.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-08-28 23:19:14
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