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00:00Let's do some breaking news.
00:0395.7 The Game. Breaking news.
00:1115 months after signing a four-year, $120 million extension,
00:18Brandon Ayuk and the San Francisco 49ers appear headed toward a divorce.
00:25Future guarantees will reportedly be voided.
00:30There are frustrations that have grown between the two sides
00:34and more to come on what's coming next.
00:41But you and I both said this earlier in the week
00:44and said that down the road we're going to have a discussion
00:47about whether or not Brandon Ayuk ever plays for the 49ers again,
00:51and we may have our answer earlier than we thought.
00:55So I'm going to start scanning this.
00:57I'd love to hear your immediate reaction to this,
01:00but I also want to scan this to see if I can share some more information
01:04on what is going to happen next, at least what's expected to happen next.
01:08The initial reaction is twofold.
01:09First, it's stunned, not stunned.
01:12I'm stunned that it's come to this now,
01:15but I'm not stunned because he hasn't had his practice window opened.
01:19He has been reportedly running around and getting better,
01:23but not really champing at the bit to return.
01:25I don't know if that was mutual or not.
01:27And the other piece of it is just how little we actually know about these contracts.
01:32And so we all do the sticker shock, four-year, $120 million, $30 million average annual value.
01:39And even as we go through the guaranteed at signing, the actual guarantee,
01:45when you get into a situation, there's language that certain parts of it are voidable.
01:50And so whatever the 49ers, if it gets to this point where he doesn't want to return
01:55and they're kind of over him returning, well, then you get down to contract language
02:00and you find a way to figure out what that exit price is, and you just pay it and you move on.
02:07Check this out.
02:07All right, here is the crux of the issue.
02:11According to sources, and this is coming from The Athletic,
02:14the report is from both Mike Silver and Diana Rossini.
02:17Okay?
02:18The Athletic.
02:19This is their report.
02:20Sources have told The Athletic that Ayuk has failed to attend meetings
02:26and declined to participate in other team activities in recent months.
02:32And the 49ers have grown increasingly frustrated with that lack of communication and presence.
02:39So that has allowed the 49ers, at least in their eyes,
02:43to respond by voiding the guaranteed money in Ayuk's contract for next season.
02:50Not this season, but in 2026, they have voided the guaranteed money in his contract,
02:57asserting that his absences amount to a failure to fulfill contractual obligations.
03:04Man.
03:05Ayuk responded by, get this, this will really shock you.
03:10He told the NFL Players Union, don't fight the move.
03:16Let them void the guarantees.
03:20Do not file a grievance on my behalf.
03:24That will clear the way for a release at the end of the year.
03:29An outright release.
03:31Yeah.
03:31Is what is expected at the end of the year.
03:34Brandon Ayuk and the 49ers headed to a divorce literally just over a year after a lengthy holdout
03:41and then a massive contract that will essentially almost not ever kick in.
03:46Yeah.
03:47And I wonder how much of that they end up having to pay.
03:51And I know that this year they paid everything they paid because he got hurt.
03:54He was hurt.
03:55And so that number, the cap hit was 9.9.
03:58Now he was given a $23 million signing bonus.
04:02I would assume that that's already been paid and it got prorated over the life of the deal
04:07as the 49ers love to do.
04:08So I wonder what the actual cash he's received is and how much of the remaining that they
04:15actually have to pay him.
04:16I know that there's going to be cap hits for the Niners because that signing bonus gets
04:20spread out over years.
04:21But if they can get out of this without having to pay him another penny after this year,
04:26they'd be fine with it.
04:27Okay.
04:27The 2026 option bonus would have paid Ayuk $24.9 million.
04:33Okay.
04:34He stood to earn an extra 1.2 as just the actual base salary.
04:40So by that point, we're up over $26 million at that point.
04:44Then there would be a $100,000 workout bonus and roster bonuses of $750,000 per game.
04:52Per game.
04:53That's about $10 million roughly.
04:54Okay.
04:55So you're looking at something in the neighborhood of next year's money, $36,000, $37 million.
05:03Yep.
05:04And the Niners will, in theory, get all of that back.
05:07And then there was probably an out in the deal after that.
05:12Yes, there was.
05:13And so he got almost none of this.
05:18Well, I'm sure he got almost none.
05:19You know what I'm saying?
05:20Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:21Relatively.
05:22Relatively speaking.
05:23So he got the $23 million signing bonus, and his base was $1.1 million, so that's $24 million.
05:30Now, I don't think that he got his roster bonus this year because he wasn't on the roster.
05:35Yeah, he's been on the pub list.
05:36$308,000 this year per game, which would have roughly been another $5 million.
05:41So he didn't get that.
05:42He didn't fight to get back and get the last four games worth of that.
05:46And so from his side, I'm sure he's thinking, you all don't want me.
05:50I don't want to be here either.
05:52So, yeah, NFLPA, don't fight this.
05:55Let them just go ahead and void it.
05:57And I'm going to get healthy and go play somewhere else.
05:59I mean, I actually, I give, I don't know the particulars of how mad everybody all got at each other, but I will say that that is quite a move by Brandon Iyuk because that's a lot of money that he's just saying, don't fight it.
06:15And now I'm going to be a free agent coming off of major, major leg reconstruction.
06:22Like, what kind of open market deal does Brandon get next year?
06:27It's going to be peanuts compared to the deal he just signed.
06:30Probably, but thinking about it from his side, first, I did the research in the offseason on what the return to play is for this injury, ACL, MCL, with some meniscus in there.
06:41And he, I think that he could have returned by now based on the range for NFL players who have had this.
06:48You're usually back by week 10 or week 11 at the latest.
06:52So I think that he could, he could be back playing now, but things have gotten so contentious that it's clear that he doesn't want to be here and they don't want him to be here if he's not going to be sold out to be here.
07:05So his option would be come back next year for one year for 34 million out the door.
07:10They're going to cut him at the end of that year for sure, or just cut bait now and go out there and try to try to make some money and then find a better spot for you.
07:19Okay.
07:20I want to reiterate the news.
07:21If you're just joining us, the 49ers and Brandon Iyuk reportedly have already basically agreed to part ways.
07:29Brandon has been skipping meetings and team activities.
07:32The 49ers have voided the guaranteed money in the contract for next year.
07:37And Brandon has reportedly told the Players Association, don't fight this.
07:41And all of that will lead to his release at the end of the year.
07:44We have a text on the Boxner and Gerson work injury attorney's text line.
07:47I see you 925 that says that was not breaking news.
07:50That was a breaking rumor.
07:51Now, I want to reiterate this.
07:53This is, these are past tense sentences.
07:56The 49ers have voided the guaranteed money in his contract.
07:59And Brandon has asked the Players Association to not fight it.
08:04Those are past tense things.
08:07So that is absolutely breaking news.
08:09And the only thing that's not done is essentially the idea of a release, but there's no other way for this to go.
08:17If they've already voided his money for next year and Brandon's not going to fight it, then you're just talking about a technicality.
08:24This is a done deal.
08:25And Brandon's time with the 49ers comes to an end, which is, I'm with you, it's like stunning in a very non-stunning sort of a way.
08:36And more on that in just a second.
08:38And 888-957-9570 if you want to get in on this.
08:42We will continue in a little bit with what we were talking about.
08:45I don't want to shut anyone out on that.
08:47But obviously this is a major, major development.
08:50You're listening to 95.7 The Game.
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09:04Visit them at meritamerica.org forward slash super.
09:08For me, the bottom line, Dibs, is that fight that they all got into last summer, they never got over it.
09:15They never, neither side ever got over it.
09:18It, in effect, was the end of the relationship.
09:22And we've heard it from so many people that the Niners regretted this deal the moment they signed it.
09:28And that hard feelings remained on both sides.
09:33And as it turns out, what we didn't know is that whole thing continued.
09:37And it just kind of got hidden underneath this injury.
09:41And that's how everybody was able to sort of keep it at bay.
09:45One other quick observation.
09:46Oh, I have a few quick observations.
09:47One other really quick one.
09:49I want you all to notice when this report hit the internet.
09:56It's a Friday news dump.
09:57Four o'clock on a Friday, right when the 49ers leave the building for a few days.
10:08They're back tomorrow, but there's no media availability.
10:11It's a Saturday.
10:12And I get that the game is on Monday, so they will still need to show up.
10:17No, yeah.
10:18I think that the media is allowed on Saturday because it's like a Friday normally.
10:21Yeah, Shanahan will talk tomorrow.
10:23At least he's been scheduled to.
10:24He'll have to give the injury report.
10:28No doubt about it.
10:29But the fact that this is landing now, once everybody kind of heads out of the building on a Friday,
10:37knowing that the Brandon Iyuk thing had been asked two weeks in a row,
10:42like when he opened the practice window, when he opened the practice window,
10:46that's interesting to me.
10:49And to me, it adds to the validity of all this.
10:52The 49ers are ready for this information to get out,
10:55and they allowed it to be released right now.
10:59Well, and the article goes on to give really interesting detail about what's been going on.
11:04His presence at the team's training facility has become scarce.
11:07Sources say he's usually there early in the morning and then leaves before other 49er players arrive.
11:13Numerous members of the organization, including some players,
11:16have reached out to Iyuk in recent weeks in an unsuccessful attempt to bring him back into the fold.
11:22This is according to sources in the Mike Silver article in The Athletic.
11:26So, clearly he's trying to get better and get healthy,
11:29but he doesn't want to do it around his teammates and certainly not around the coaches.
11:33And Silver goes on to give great detail that we already know about last year,
11:37about the hold in, and then he comes out and he's wearing the wrong shorts,
11:41and then he wasn't totally fit and ready to play.
11:44He finally was starting to play well, then he got hurt with a terrible injury.
11:47So, this thing has been an absolute calamity.
11:51But you look at it also, Mark, from this piece, and there's two things that I want to say about it.
11:56One, they drafted Ricky Pearsall.
11:59And they drafted Ricky kind of expecting that this thing may not go great.
12:04And also, this week in one of Kyle Shanahan's press availabilities,
12:08he was asked about Tett McMillan, who he'll see this week, Monday night, who's a rookie.
12:14And the question was, you know, if he was there at 11, would you guys have taken him?
12:19And Kyle was like, I was hoping he'd be there.
12:21We love him.
12:22And, you know, I love the player all along, and he's having a great year and this and that.
12:26And so, don't be surprised if the Niners are looking for more receivers again in the draft,
12:31and it makes sense now that Brandon Ayuk is going to be gone.
12:34Well, I also wonder real quick how this affects the situation surrounding Juwan Jennings.
12:39Because Juwan sort of staged a half-injury, half-holdout during camp.
12:45He expressed his frustration.
12:47It has led most of us to believe that Juwan would not be on the team beyond this year.
12:53Because also, the thought was, I mean, next year you've got two first-round draft picks
12:57who are going to be your top two receivers.
12:59Ricky Pearsall and Brandon Ayuk.
13:02But not anymore.
13:03So, I wonder.
13:04I wonder where this is headed.
13:06Don't forget that the 49ers have been adding receivers, young receivers, to the fold every year.
13:11Jacob Cowling has been absent all year, but is still on the team.
13:15Jordan Watkins has started to play a little bit of a role.
13:19They really do like him, and I think that they probably see a bigger role from him next year.
13:23But you're probably right.
13:25There will be more.
13:26Not only from the draft.
13:28There may be more in free agency as well.
13:31But, you know, one thing that I sort of said at the beginning of the year,
13:35which even though it's been marred by injury,
13:38but, like, I really, really felt firmly that before this year started,
13:44when people said, like, you know, your number one wide receiver is still out.
13:49No.
13:50Ricky Pearsall is the number one wide receiver on this team.
13:53Like, that's going to be his role going forward.
13:57That's who they see in that role.
14:01And, Brandon, to your point, let's just say he doesn't want to be here.
14:05No.
14:06And I don't know.
14:07Like, it sounds to me like the Niners want him here more than he wants to be here,
14:11or at least did.
14:12But I think that they're probably, shoot.
14:17They're fed up.
14:17And they're probably fine with it.
14:20If there's not going to be a grievance file, then this is a win for the Niners.
14:24Well, and it's a sunk cost.
14:26So if you had to give him the signing bonus, which I believe that they did,
14:29because you did the signing bonus and you prorated over the life of the deal, fine.
14:33So the cap hit gets spread out over five years, and this year you had to pay him what you had to,
14:39and you didn't have to pay the roster bonus because he was never on the roster.
14:42So that's a sunk cost.
14:43If you can go into next year and have no additional cost that you have to pay,
14:48and the only thing that's going to hurt you is a pretty small, maybe 1% of your cap hit over the next few years.
14:55If you're the Niners and you're totally fed up and the player wants to get out so bad that he's willing to not grieve
15:02and say, yeah, we don't even want a grievance, then if you're the Niners, you're pumped.
15:07Yes, you'd love to have Peek Ayuk here.
15:09You'd love to have a player who is a good wide receiver when healthy and when interested.
15:14But Ricky Pearsall looks like he is on a good trajectory.
15:18And you mentioned Juwan Jennings.
15:19That becomes interesting in the offseason.
15:21If I'm Juwan, I'm thinking now, hey, maybe I can get a little bit of an extension.
15:26I can get a little bit more money if he wants to stay.
15:29888-957-9570.
15:31We'll take your calls on Brandon Ayuk.
15:33If you're just joining us, the report is that the Niners' relationship with Brandon Ayuk is coming to a close.
15:40He has reportedly been skipping meetings.
15:42He's been away from the facility.
15:44He's been skipping team activities.
15:46The 49ers have voided the guaranteed money on the 2026 season.
15:50He's been alleging that basically he has not fulfilled his contract.
15:55And Brandon has reportedly asked the Players Association to not fight that.
15:59And what that will mean is at the end of the year, he is released and he is gone.
16:04And the wide receiver room from the Super Bowl year not that long ago that featured Debo Samuel and Brandon Ayuk
16:10will already have totally turned over.
16:14I mean, obviously, other than third and Juwan, who may not be back next year either, for all we know.
16:21So, 888-957-9570.
16:24Let's hear from some of you on this.
16:26Theo in the East Bay, first up.
16:28Hi, Theo.
16:28Thanks for the call.
16:29Yeah, thanks for taking my call, guys.
16:32Look, this, me as a fan reacting to it real time, this sucks.
16:38And, you know, I'm looking for somebody to blame and I can't help it but to look at Kyle Shanahan.
16:45I mean, reports came out that he was the one who ran up the stairs to go to the wide receiver room
16:51and stopped the trade from sending Brandon Ayuk to the Steelers.
16:55So, and you know what?
16:57I just want them to be successful, especially at the wide receiver position.
17:01And now with B.A. gone, it's like, who do we have?
17:04Ricky Pearsall.
17:05You just said it.
17:06J.J. might be gone.
17:07Now Kyle Shanahan has to live with the fact that not only did he stick his neck out for B.A. to stay a 49er,
17:15but he didn't even want to be here.
17:16So now he's got to deal with him being gone.
17:19So, as a fan, frustrated at Kyle Shanahan.
17:23Yeah, Theo, I get that.
17:25Like, from, there's two things here to me.
17:27And that story, by the way, is reiterated in the piece.
17:30Completely.
17:30Of Shanahan running upstairs to tell John, stop the trade.
17:33And you know darn well, I said it that day, I think this is a mistake.
17:36Like, I was out on Brandon Ayuk, and so I'll agree that it was a bummer that they ended up playing that the way that they did.
17:45The whole summer, in fact, they misplayed that thing.
17:48Yep.
17:48So I'll buy that, except for, let me make a little bit of a Brock Purdy comparison.
17:54The Trey Lance thing was a huge mistake, right?
17:56But then Brock Purdy saved them from it.
17:59If Brandon Ayuk signing a contract was a big mistake, then today is the saving of it.
18:06Like, they don't, they're not stuck under all of that money now.
18:09Well, it's not, but part of the Trey Lance was that you blew picks in the mistake.
18:13This one, and the Russini silver piece in the Athletic reminds us that Pittsburgh was offering a second and a third.
18:19So had you not run up the stairs, Ayuk is a stealer, maybe he doesn't get hurt, whatever, but you'd have another second and another third.
18:27It's a mistake.
18:27And you don't, and Ayuk played and he got hurt.
18:30And Mike even points out in the piece, the Arizona game where he had 12 catches, and it's like, all right, B.A., you're back.
18:37You know, the rust is shaking off, you got your deal, two games later, last play as a Niner.
18:42Man.
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