- 2 days ago
Grant Cohn joins the show to tell the guys why he believes the 49ers are to blame in the Brandon Aiyuk saga.
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00:00Joining us now via the Rude Guest Hotline is Grant Cohn.
00:03He is the publisher of 49ers on Sports Illustrated.
00:06You can give him a follow at Grant Cohn.
00:08Really big presence on YouTube.
00:10Grant, thank you for making time for us, dude.
00:12How are you?
00:13I'm doing great, man.
00:14How are you guys doing?
00:14We're well, man.
00:15Bro, we're good.
00:17B-Mitch was doing a bike ride this weekend.
00:19I was playing golf this weekend, and my phone is just blowing up
00:23with this Brandon Iyuk situation.
00:28You know Brandon.
00:30You know the situation out there.
00:32For him to come out now publicly and call the Niners out,
00:36what was your level of surprise?
00:38What is the tenor out there in the Bay Area?
00:42I'm surprised he didn't do it sooner.
00:44I mean, he's been quiet for a very long time.
00:46It seems like the Niners have been shaping the narrative ever since they
00:50may have leaked or since the report came out that they voided his guarantees
00:55and he left the team.
00:56I think everyone's been sort of waiting for his side of the story.
00:59And we're starting to get it.
01:01I mean, a lot of people have been speculating, like, is he like Antonio Brown?
01:05Does he have CTE?
01:07I think the answer is clearly no.
01:09He just seems like a guy who deeply, deeply and sincerely hates his employer,
01:13which is kind of relatable.
01:15I mean, I think at some point in everyone's life, they've worked somewhere they
01:18didn't, or they absolutely hated the boss with the passion of the entire company.
01:23And this guy just has like $60, $70 million and can say so.
01:28And he can dictate where he wants to go next.
01:31He might have to sit out a couple of years, but it kind of feels like Carson Palmer 20 years
01:36later.
01:36And no one called Carson Palmer a crazy person because he didn't want to play for the Bengals
01:41anymore.
01:41I think people understood.
01:42But with the Niners, they have a different perception, a different reputation.
01:46Although there are, he's not the first player who's left this team extremely disgruntled.
01:52So I'm kind of on his side.
01:54Uh, I think they clearly need to break up and it's weird that the Niners just won't
01:59let the breakup happen.
02:00So what, what is going to make that happen?
02:04Will it be when they get close to the season and that, that money is still in their book,
02:08they got to get it off.
02:09And do you think him doing this will make them do it any sooner?
02:13Or will they hunker down even more?
02:15I think that's what he's trying to do.
02:17Um, now he's on this, did not report left the squad list.
02:22Yeah.
02:22And as long as on that list, they don't have to pay him anything.
02:25Um, so I think at some point he could just show up, they take him off the list and they'd
02:30probably release him.
02:31I think he knows that his agent knows that.
02:34And that's probably the plan.
02:35I don't know when he's going to show up, but theoretically he could have showed up this
02:39week to minicamp mandatory minicamp.
02:41Um, after June 1st, didn't they cancel it though?
02:44They canceled it.
02:45And it's like, why in the past it canceled the last day, but this year they canceled
02:49the whole thing.
02:50And now there's like, you know, conspiracy theories.
02:53Like, well, did you cancel it so that you could avoid Brandon?
02:55I use, which seems weird, but also both sides have been so extremely petty.
03:00I wouldn't even put it past him.
03:01And then there's the, the added wrinkle that the Santa Clara police department just charged
03:06Brandon.
03:06I use with this weird, um, speeding violation, man, uh, crime misdemeanor.
03:13And he has to come back.
03:15So it's like, what the hell is going on out here?
03:17So we had, we were on the air when the, the Santa Clara attorney general or whatever, put
03:23that out and brought like, like you, like we know how this league works and we know the
03:29levels of relationships that NFL organizations have with local law enforcement.
03:35And that sure seemed pretty weird and obvious to me and what it was attempting.
03:41Let's, I want to get to the root of the problem with this.
03:44Like one, who's he mad at?
03:47Is it Kyle or John or both?
03:48And why?
03:50Like, why is there this depth of anger, hostility, whatever it is?
03:56Yeah, that's a really good question.
03:58I mean, you could say it stems from the, uh, contract negotiation, but I think it went
04:03back way before that.
04:04If the Niners have a very particular type of culture, it's a very frat boyish kind of
04:10Republican culture to put it, you know, mildly.
04:13And Brandon's just not that kind of guy.
04:15He was put in a doghouse early in his career.
04:17It was never about his performance.
04:19He just didn't really fit in.
04:20He doesn't really bend the knee and, and talk the corporate talk and kiss, but the way,
04:26you know, you're supposed to with this team.
04:28And I think he always kind of paid the price.
04:30And when it was time to get paid, they low balled him and he took it personally.
04:34And then he got hurt.
04:35And then they tried to trade him when he was hurt.
04:37And then he just took the whole thing very personally, which is fair.
04:40And he's such a good player.
04:41I think he just decided, I don't want to play for you anymore.
04:44I want to play for my friend, Jaden Daniels in Washington.
04:47End of story.
04:47And I mean, that's kind of what Carson Palmer felt 20 years ago.
04:50He's like, look, I have a lot of money.
04:52I don't have to play football for money.
04:54I want to play football for the love of it.
04:55And that's not going to happen in Cincinnati.
04:56And that's exactly how Brandon feels about the Niners.
04:58And people are making him seem like he's crazy for feeling that way.
05:01I don't think he's crazy for feeling that way.
05:03See, Greg, the thing about me, though, I care about the Washington Commanders.
05:06I don't care about the 49ers.
05:07I never really, I never saw an eye with Kyle Shanahan.
05:10So I can understand, I know how such an ass he could be.
05:13If you can show up and force their hand, why the hell do you have them showing up to
05:18force their hand and make them let you go so you can be here with the team you want
05:22to be with and your best friend?
05:24That's a great question.
05:25My best guess, and maybe I'm wrong, is that the plan was to do so after June 1st.
05:30He felt like the Niners wouldn't cut him before June 1st, but after June 1st, it'd be a different
05:34cap hit.
05:35So that's when he would show up.
05:37Maybe I'm wrong.
05:37Maybe I'm giving him too much of the benefit of the doubt.
05:39Maybe he's never going to show up and he's just going to post cryptic things on social
05:42media like, you know, like a teenager.
05:44I have no idea.
05:45But we'll see.
05:47I mean, if he shows up for training camp, which I imagine he will at some point, they'll have
05:51to cut him it's as long as he doesn't show up, though, they'll just keep him on that
05:58left squad list like that.
05:59That to me is is the hole in all of this is like I understand he's made a lot of
06:06money,
06:07but I know a lot of football players.
06:08You know, a lot of football players, Brian, you know, more than all of us.
06:12Players don't walk away from the cash to not ask the PA to appeal the, you know, a $25
06:21million check is nuts to me that like it's Watergate follow the money.
06:28Like I just I keep going back to that and can't wrap my head around.
06:32Yeah, well, he definitely missed rehab assignments in the offseason last year.
06:36I think that violated the terms of his contract and there's really nothing that he can argue.
06:41And maybe he would maybe he regrets that.
06:43I mean, that was clearly a stupid decision.
06:45But I think at a certain point he made the decision that he hated the Niners so much that
06:50he would rather walk away from them and leave money on the table and play with his friend
06:54than ever step foot in that organization again, which, again, seems crazy.
06:58But I don't think you understand the level of alienation certain players feel on this team.
07:03Like Devondra Campbell straight up quit the team mid game a couple of years ago and people
07:08called him crazy, but it's like when it's one guy after another, it makes you feel like
07:11there's a click of in-group players on this team and then there's everyone else and he
07:15was one of the everyone else guys, which is weird because he was one of the best players
07:19on the team and one of their young stars.
07:21It is crazy.
07:22Let's this this question may be impossible to nail down.
07:26We're talking with our friend Grant Cohn, publisher of 49ers on Sports Illustrated.
07:30Check him out on YouTube.
07:31Joining us here on the rude guest hotline, the one question no one can answer, where
07:37is he at health wise?
07:39Like he hasn't played in almost two years.
07:41Do we have any idea?
07:44No idea.
07:45I mean, last year he showed up for all of, even after they voided his guarantees, he
07:49showed up for a training camp and preseason in the first few weeks of the regular season
07:53and he was out on the field before the game running routes and he looked like he was in
07:56shape and healthy, but like, I'm not a doctor.
07:59They never cleared him, but in retrospect, it seemed like they never really wanted to
08:03play him or that he never really wanted to play for them.
08:06So it seemed like he was making a statement to the media like, hey, I'm healthy.
08:10I'd love to get out of here, but I'd love a team to come get me, preferably the Washington
08:13Commanders.
08:14Then he left.
08:15I don't know if he became depressed or if he felt like everything was hopeless and
08:18that he was never going to get out of there.
08:19He started posting pictures where he looked a little bit bigger, like maybe he wasn't in
08:24shape.
08:24And then a couple of days ago with that Washington Commanders hat, he posted the picture of shirtless
08:28he looked like he was at least in shape.
08:31So, I mean, the Brandon I, you, I know works extremely hard and shows up for every offseason
08:37practice.
08:38So I don't think that's really going to be an issue.
08:40I wouldn't expect him to be the player he was at 25 after missing two years or a year
08:44and a half.
08:45But I still think if he's 90% of what he was, he's a really, really good player and
08:51an asset to an organization, no matter how strange he may seem.
08:55But like, so I, back to my Commanders love, how long can they wait for this?
09:02Because if he's not going to show up, they're not going to release him and keep him on his
09:07list.
09:07Don't have to pay him.
09:09And I just feel like this team should not be held hostage.
09:14Yeah, that's fair.
09:15I mean, what's the alternative though?
09:17Like sign Stefan Diggs.
09:19I mean, he played last year, had over a thousand yards with a team that was playing
09:22in the Super Bowl.
09:24Yeah, he's kind of washed though.
09:25And you know it.
09:26And the thing with Ike is like, he has a potential to be really, really good.
09:30And, and again, he's best friends with Jaden Daniels.
09:32And like, if he were to get to Washington, he'd be happy.
09:36He'd be, he'd be, he wouldn't be toxic in my opinion.
09:39I think he'd be a big asset.
09:40But again, the question is why haven't he showed up to the Niners?
09:43How bad do you really want to play for the Washington?
09:45That's what I'm saying.
09:45Do you just want to like, do you really want to put the hat, you just want to put the
09:48hat
09:48on and complain or do you want to get there?
09:51And I don't know the answer to it.
09:52And we'll find out in the next month or two.
09:54I think he wants to, I think he sincerely plans on playing for Washington and he's going
09:58to show up to the Niners and try to force his way out.
10:00I think he's on the offensive right now.
10:02And it's fair to ask why, why he waited this long.
10:05I think June 1st was a key date.
10:07And now that it's passed and the Niners didn't cut him, I think it blew his mind a little
10:10bit.
10:10And I think he's going to try to force his way out.
10:12We'll see.
10:12The next time, I mean, I think he clearly is trying to force his way out, but the only
10:17way to, to really force that is to show up.
10:20And now they, I mean, there's, there's nothing out there till late July, right?
10:26That's right.
10:27There's a warrant out for his arrest.
10:29So I think he's going to have to come back here eventually.
10:31I imagine he will.
10:32We'll see.
10:33What, like, what's crazy is as, as much as clearly this thing has gone sideways there.
10:42I remember, I believe it was a Michael Silver piece in the athletic a few years ago about
10:48Kyle standing on the table to make sure they got the contract done for IU.
10:53Like there were good seasons there.
10:55Like, what was he like in the locker room during the 1300 yard season?
11:01He's always been the same.
11:02He's quiet.
11:03He stays to himself.
11:04I mean, he was, he was part of the team.
11:06He was, you know, into Brock Purdy.
11:09He promoted Kyle Shanahan, but he always felt like the fourth option on a run first team.
11:15He called himself that.
11:16Um, and then he didn't get targeted that much in the Superbowl and they lost and it blew
11:20his mind and he never really recovered.
11:22And I think he and Kyle never really had a great relationship.
11:25Kyle drafted him.
11:26Kyle appreciated him.
11:27And I think I, um, you know, never really liked being here because he wasn't really featured
11:32and to, to really get in Kyle's good graces, you have to, you have to kind of kiss his
11:38butt a little bit.
11:39Like Debo Samuel would go into his office every day and would be, they were like friends
11:45or Debo made him seem like they were friends.
11:47And Brandon, I, isn't that kind of guy.
11:48He doesn't talk very much.
11:50And I think I, Kyle takes that the wrong way or I don't, they're just like oil and water.
11:56Um, and so once the Superbowl loss happened, they, they could not repair the relationship.
12:00They tried to repair it with a contract, but that doesn't really do anything.
12:04Um, and then he, he, he, he got paid and he started like annoying Kyle even more.
12:09Like he would show up to practice with the wrong shorts on, which is a tiny little thing.
12:12And maybe Brandon felt like he'd earned it, but Kyle felt like, why are you trying to
12:17set yourself apart from the team?
12:18There's all these little things.
12:19God knows what was happening in meetings.
12:20Then he got hurt.
12:21I think the organization decided like, we don't want to put up with this anymore, which is
12:24where we're at now.
12:26We're at now.
12:26Yep.
12:28Um, it's the whole, this like, uh, of all the weird NFL sagas.
12:33And I covered the Dan Snyder Redskins for a long time.
12:36Like I saw some weird stuff.
12:37This, this whole thing is just so bizarre and like eventually he gets released, right?
12:44I is what he's hoping for.
12:46Certainly.
12:47What kind of, is he willing to take, I, I don't agree with you.
12:52The digs is washed.
12:53I think digs had a solid season.
12:55You put them in a good offense.
12:56He can help a team, right?
12:57I think digs isn't on a roster right now.
12:59Cause he wants probably more than the market's willing to pay him.
13:01What, what, what is the Brandon Iuke mindset towards his next contract?
13:07Cause I think that's a hurdle in and of itself.
13:10Well, I would imagine at this point he'd be looking for a one year deal and then he could
13:15come back and then prove something and then get something bigger down the line.
13:20That's what I would imagine is realistic for him.
13:22And I think again, what the Niners are looking for and what I, you can sort of accusing him
13:25of is being scared of that week six matchup on Monday night football at Levi stadium.
13:30Like if I were to go to the commanders now, he'd be really prepared for that game.
13:35He'd be in mid season form.
13:36He might light the Niners up, but if he just gets to the commanders in September, right
13:40before week one, maybe he's not a big factor week six.
13:43And again, that seems like maybe it shouldn't be the number one thing on the Niners mind,
13:46but I mean, it seems like I think it is.
13:49And maybe it is.
13:52It's, it's really interesting for Washington.
13:54And I don't know that you can speak to this and obviously it's been a few years, right?
13:58What was Adam Peters was in San Fran for many, many years when that whole operation started
14:04Kyle and Lynch, AP was there, right?
14:06He left Denver and joined that organization.
14:09What was AP and BA's relationship?
14:11If you ever saw them interact or, or because like, yes, Iuke and Jaden are clearly close
14:18friends, but AP is also tight with Kyle and Lynch.
14:23Like I saw those guys at the combine, like all like, you know what I mean?
14:26Like hanging out, like they have a longstanding relationship.
14:29If things have gone so nuclear with the Niners organization, are we sure that Peters isn't
14:35seeing their side of things?
14:39No, I think Peters is looking at himself as an opportunist here.
14:42Like Kyle and Sean messed up and he can reap the benefits because I think Peters was the
14:46good guy in the Niners organization.
14:47He never had to go to the negotiating table and explain to Brandon, Iuke and his agent,
14:51why he's only worth $25 million a year and why he's not really number one wide receiver
14:57and things like that.
14:58Like he was always in the player's corner.
15:00I saw him with players any number of times.
15:02He seemed like he was very personable.
15:04So no, I would think he has a good relationship with Brandon.
15:06Iuke and it's probably, it would probably be a low factor why he wants it.
15:09I think the reason he wants to go to Washington is a hundred percent about Jaden Daniels.
15:13And I think that's a powerful thing.
15:15Again, this guy has been miserable from his perspective, his entire NFL career.
15:19And you can look, sit back and be like, man, why are you so mad?
15:22Like, and I think a lot of people, I think the Niners feel like that.
15:24Like, what is the problem?
15:26But that's how he feels.
15:27And I think if he went to Washington, you'd see a version of Brandon, Iuke that, I mean,
15:30look at Javon Kinlaw.
15:32Javon Kinlaw was kind of miserable on the Niners.
15:34He didn't really do anything.
15:35He wasn't particularly good.
15:37Now he's on the Washington commanders and he's fully blossomed as a person and a player.
15:41He's not a pro bowler, but it's a whole different situation for him.
15:44It's a different culture on that team.
15:46I think Ike would have a similar reverse.
15:49You know, I just, I understand the date Jaden Bennett's friend.
15:53I played with some friends and once I got on a team with him, I did not like him because
15:57they didn't work enough.
15:58They were a little odd and out there.
16:00My whole thing is if he waited until he signed to start working out, that's the problem.
16:05Not the problem of when they signed him.
16:06So he, like all the posts I've seen, I begged to see a post of him out there working out.
16:12They went out to California and worked out.
16:14I didn't see him working out with them.
16:16And that wouldn't have been a problem with no contract or anything.
16:19I need to see stuff where he's showing me want to play football and not necessarily just
16:24want to piss off the 49ers.
16:27It's a great point.
16:28And until he starts doing that, it's not off the table that he could miss this season,
16:32even if he were to go to the Washington Commanders or whenever that were to happen.
16:36I mean, he needs to show that he's actually in shape and I can't speak to that.
16:39Yeah, man.
16:40It's it.
16:41This is one of the more bizarre situations I can remember.
16:46Grant, we appreciate you making time for us, dude.
16:50All right, man.
16:50Grant Cohn, publisher of 49ers on SI.
16:54Give him a follow at Grant Cohn, C-O-H-N.
16:57Again, phone lines are now open 800-636-1067, 800-636-1067.
17:05This Brandon Iyuk situation seems to be seems to be going nuclear.
17:09How does it end?
17:10Does he end up here?
17:11Does he help them on the field?
17:12Do you not want him in town?
17:14Your calls next.
17:15It's B. Mitch and Finley.
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