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San Francisco 49ers Reporter Grant Cohn from Sports Illustrated joins The Kevin Sheehan Show to break down what led to the Brandon Aiyuk and 49ers fall out, the timeline of events and how this situation could play out in the coming weeks leading up to training camp.
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00:00Joining us right now is Grant Cohn. Grant covers the 49ers for Sports Illustrated.
00:06You can link to all of his stuff on X at Grant C-O-H-N.
00:13And I have to tell you that literally I had, you know, for you today,
00:18all I wanted to do was have somebody on that could take us through this, you know, saga chronologically.
00:26And so literally during the break, as we were waiting to call you, I check out your ex.
00:33And Grant's just posted a story, how the 49ers relationship with Brandon Iyuk deteriorated in 21 steps.
00:43It's the chronological layout of the entire thing.
00:46Because Grant, I think for us, you know, it's been, well, there's so much we don't know.
00:52What's the root cause of all this?
00:54So I'm not going to read your entire 21 steps.
00:57I want people to go read it themselves.
00:59But I want to jump to, first of all, they loved him.
01:03You know, you write about how they moved up in the draft.
01:06They picked him.
01:07They loved him.
01:07And at the end of 2023, with one, you know, doghouse episode in 2022 or 2021,
01:14basically he was a top 10 receiver in the league, which I totally agree with,
01:19and was here talking about it at the end of 2023.
01:22And then, you know, all hell begins to break loose.
01:27So that basically takes us up, you know, through the Super Bowl,
01:31which he was a big part of the NFC Championship game.
01:34You write that they wouldn't have been in the Super Bowl without him.
01:37And then the offseason starts.
01:40So let's start there chronologically.
01:44What were the significant, you know, steps that you've got in the 21 steps
01:49that really began to influence the relationship that he had with the organization?
01:57Well, it was always strained.
02:00I mean, they put him in the doghouse in 2021 so they could play Muhammad Sanu and Trent
02:04Shurfield, and that was weird.
02:06But when they got to 2024, they wanted him.
02:09They wanted to extend him, and they thought they could get him for $25, $26 million a year.
02:15But the Niners famously take their time with these extensions.
02:19Maybe it used to be effective for them, but this time it didn't work out.
02:22They waited, and the Detroit Lions reset the market at wide receiver
02:26and gave Amon Ross St. Brown $30 million a year.
02:29And the Niners, their minds were blown.
02:32They thought only, like, the top, top wide receivers would get that.
02:34And at this point, Brent and I, you looked at the market and said,
02:37well, that's what I'm worth, too.
02:38I'm just as good as Amon Ross St. Brown.
02:41And the Niners dragged their feet on this, but eventually did offer him $30 million a year.
02:46And he signed the deal.
02:47But when he signed it, the Niners were like, they seemed bitter about it.
02:51They needed everyone to know that Ayuk waited weeks to sign the deal,
02:55that he could have signed it earlier in training camp but didn't,
02:59and that they tried to trade him, that they wanted to trade him to the Pittsburgh Steelers,
03:03but that Kyle Shanahan ran into the front office at the last minute and stopped the trade.
03:06So they let everyone know, like, we're conflicted on this.
03:10We're not of one mind on this.
03:12Brent and I, you've heard it.
03:12It's a very weird way to introduce your young star player who's supposed to be around for the future.
03:17And I think that really got things, it got off the second contract off on the wrong foot to begin
03:23with.
03:24Okay, real quickly, because you mentioned the doghouse episode,
03:29but you wrote that it was unspecified reasons.
03:32Like, why did he end up in the doghouse that particular year?
03:37Is it just, because look, we have experience with Kyle here,
03:40and we know that that can happen.
03:42But do you even have a guess as to why he ended up in the doghouse?
03:47Yes, I have a guess.
03:48I mean, they never explained why,
03:50and they made you infer that it must have been something in practice or his effort,
03:55but he's always been a great practice player.
03:57He always blocks during games.
03:59I think really it was a personality issue.
04:02Kyle Shanahan makes the picks, and he makes the picks based on film,
04:06and he was right on Brandon Ayuk.
04:07He saw his film and got it right,
04:09but he didn't really get a feel for who Brandon is.
04:11And Kyle wants guys who get along with him,
04:14who look up to him, who are deferential to him.
04:17And Brandon Ayuk isn't that way at all.
04:19He's very quiet.
04:20He's standoffish.
04:21He doesn't play the corporate game.
04:23And I think that's what they were punishing him for,
04:26for being aloof, for maybe being, you know,
04:30exactly who he's showing himself to be.
04:32So it wasn't about how he played.
04:34It was about his mix with the culture and the coach.
04:38And again, this is something they should have known before they drafted him.
04:41And once they knew it in 2021,
04:42maybe this is something they should have taken into account
04:44when they were negotiating a contract with him.
04:46All right.
04:47Well, let's jump to what you just talked about,
04:49because this starts,
04:50this seems like the actual true beginning of,
04:54you know, a fracture, a rift.
04:56They offer him the deal.
04:59It's the Amon Ross St. Brown deal, essentially.
05:01So they've given him market value for the kind of player he believes he is.
05:07And then you write that Ayuk's offer had been on the table for weeks,
05:11and he took his sweet time signing it.
05:13And during that period of time,
05:16they decide they're going to try to trade him.
05:18By the way,
05:19that deal would have been on the table for him to sign.
05:23It would have had to have been pulled for them to make the trade.
05:27And then Pittsburgh would have had the responsibility of signing him.
05:31But do you sort of identify this is the moment where things started to go south?
05:37Yes, absolutely.
05:38The Niners give him this contract,
05:39but they sort of do it while holding their nose.
05:41And they sort of let everyone know that,
05:44well, this is Kyle's move,
05:45and this is Kyle's responsibility.
05:47And if it doesn't work out, this is on him.
05:50So Kyle sort of takes a weird stance
05:52now that he's put his neck out for Brandon Ayuk.
05:54Ayuk now, he's gotten the money.
05:55He's the second highest paid player on the team,
05:57and he wants some star treatment.
05:57Well, what took him so long to sign the deal, Grant?
06:01He's strange.
06:02I think it's clear.
06:03Here's what took him so long.
06:05He doesn't like the Niners.
06:06The Niners don't really like him.
06:08And he's thinking, do I sign this contract?
06:10It's a lot of money.
06:11But Kyle liked him.
06:13Did he?
06:13I mean, Kyle appreciated him as a player.
06:16Kyle likes Debo.
06:17Kyle and Debo Samuel are like lifelong friends.
06:20Kyle and Brandon barely talk.
06:22Brandon doesn't really have that many friends.
06:24He's friends with Jaden Daniels and his wife.
06:27So it was a very different relationship.
06:29Kyle valued him in his offense.
06:31But once he got hurt, I think there was really no ties to him anymore.
06:34All right.
06:35So we're talking to Grant Cohn.
06:37Sports Illustrated covers the Niners.
06:39So the deal gets signed.
06:40He doesn't get traded to the Steelers.
06:42And now before he blows his knee out in week seven, I think it was, just tell me if there
06:50was significance to this practice situation where Ayuk's wearing different shorts and I guess the wrong shorts versus the rest
07:00of the team.
07:00Was that important?
07:02Did that further the fracture and the falling apart of the relationship?
07:09I think it was emblematic.
07:11I think it was one example of probably many.
07:14And this one was caught by, I caught it on my, on my iPhone camera.
07:17And it's, he wanted some star treatment.
07:19Kyle Sanahan treats his stars differently.
07:22Trent Williams gets two lockers.
07:24Everyone else gets one.
07:25Debo Samuel could be 15 pounds overweight.
07:28He gets two lockers.
07:29He gets two lockers.
07:30He's like Barry Bonds.
07:31And he gets two lockers in a, he gets two and a half lockers.
07:34So Ren and Ayuk wanted some star treatment.
07:36He's the second highest paid player on the team.
07:37He gets more money than Trent.
07:38So he decided he wants to wear red shorts one day while everyone else wears black.
07:42And Kyle Shanahan notices, goes right over to him.
07:45I mean, gets in a big argument with him, makes, makes, I changes shorts on the field in front of
07:50everyone.
07:50It's pretty humiliating, which is like, look, man, wear the right shorts.
07:53But at the same time, it's like, if you're going to give him all this money, why don't you just
07:57give him the freaking star treat?
07:58Why don't you let him wear his freaking red shorts and have a good relationship with him?
08:02So you have the player you want, but every time, every step of the way, they gave him the money
08:06and still treated him like the, you know, second year player in the doghouse that he was in the past.
08:11Yeah, but, but he, like in this particular example, he's initiating the, for the lack of a better description, the
08:19confrontation.
08:20Right.
08:21This is Brandon Ayuk.
08:22This is who he's always been.
08:24And this is who the Niners wanted to sign.
08:26Well, my stance was in 2024, I was saying, trade him.
08:30He doesn't fit your culture.
08:32You don't throw him the ball enough.
08:33You're a run first team that, you know, your offense goes through your tight end and your running back.
08:37Why don't you trade him right now, get a second round pick and don't enable his behavior.
08:43I mean, he's not going to change.
08:44If you give him $30 million a year, he's going to stay the same and get even bolder, which is
08:48what he is.
08:49He has a point.
08:50He's always had a point.
08:51He doesn't really fit on this team.
08:53They don't really take advantage of his skillset to the, to the fullest degree, but he doesn't go about it
08:58in the right way.
08:58This is, this is how he acts and he's hurting himself and he's hurting the 49ers.
09:04They could have traded him for a second.
09:05Now they're going to try to trade him for a seventh round pick.
09:07They're not going to get anything for him.
09:09Yeah.
09:09Real quickly, before we get to, you know, all of this stuff that we really have heard a lot about,
09:15you know, the voided guarantees and what prompted that, et cetera.
09:18But I, you, you know, it certainly sounds like you are a fan of IU, the player.
09:25And I think there are a lot of Washington fans that, you know, this happens in every market where you
09:32watch your own team so much more than you watch the rest of the league.
09:36So you think your own guy's better than everybody else, which is fine.
09:39But I felt like at the end of 2023, it seems like the way you felt, I thought he was
09:45a top 10 receiver and descending.
09:47Like I thought this guy had a chance, maybe not to be Jefferson or chase to be, but to be
09:53in that next year down, if he wasn't already there, uh, you know, at that point, tell everybody here.
10:01Like if they did, if we did get the brand in IU of 2023, what we'd be getting.
10:09Jeez.
10:10I mean, he's a top five route runner in the league, or at least he was in 2023.
10:14The kind of guy who could run 2021, 22 miles an hour and stop on a dime and make any
10:19cut on any route, short, intermediate, deep.
10:23Um, and really the Niners never took advantage of his deep prowess because it's not really their playbook.
10:28You know, Kyle Shanahan, their quarterbacks, Brock Purdy, they had him more running intermediate stuff, but he can do everything.
10:33I kind of think of him as like Torrey Holt.
10:35Remember Torrey Holt?
10:36That's who this guy could have been in that offense with that coach and that quarterback, but he was playing
10:41for Kyle and Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy.
10:43Also, he's a top five blocker in the league at wide receiver.
10:46He's very committed.
10:47He's usually, I mean, he was in phenomenal shape.
10:50Not like Debo Samuel.
10:51You have to wonder like, is he motivated?
10:53Is he happy?
10:54Is he going to run his routes hard?
10:55Like Debo is only really affected if he has the ball in his hand.
10:59That's not Brandon.
10:59I use, he was a much better player than Debo pretty much every year, except for one.
11:03And yet he always took a backseat to Debo, which is another reason he had a slight.
11:07But what's kind of cool about Ayuk is that he, those chips on his shoulder fuel him.
11:12He plays extremely hard.
11:13It's kind of like Pierre Garçon.
11:15He has this very dark mentality he goes to on the field and he's a tough guy.
11:22Yeah.
11:24Apparently there's a Brandon Ayuk post as we're sitting here talking, Grant.
11:28No!
11:29Yeah, I know.
11:31It's an IG post that he is in D.C. apparently.
11:34Right, Max?
11:35Is that what I'm saying?
11:36Yeah.
11:36So it's just two pictures of him seemingly in the back of a Sprinter van with the caption,
11:41how could you cross me?
11:42At Chrome Hearts official and the location says Washington, D.C.
11:46Okay.
11:47All right.
11:47Well, they can't do anything with him and they can't tamper with him and he hasn't been released yet.
11:53We'll get to that in a moment.
11:54All right.
11:54We're talking to Grant Cohn, Sports Illustrated, San Francisco.
11:57So let's get to the injury and then all that happens after the injury.
12:05Give me the key pieces to where this thing completely falls apart and ends in where we are now,
12:12which is essentially a 99.99% chance he's never going to play in San Francisco again.
12:19Give us the key sort of milestone events that created the situation we're in now.
12:26Okay.
12:26So we've already established that they've soured on this deal.
12:30They were never really 100% behind it.
12:31He's wearing the wrong shorts.
12:33They're upset about it, but he's healthy.
12:35Then he tears up his knee and they're looking at like, okay, we didn't really like giving him this much
12:39money when he was healthy.
12:40Now he's probably never going to be the same player.
12:42Um, what do we do?
12:44Let's trade him.
12:45And we, we asked John Lynch at the combine, like what's going on with IU?
12:49Is it true that you're trying to trade him?
12:50And he was like, well, you know, it's a funny league and these guys are never off the table and
12:54you always got to listen.
12:55So I heard that he even posted about it on his YouTube channel.
12:58Like I can't believe they tried to trade me.
13:00I mean, I couldn't even walk.
13:02So he took this personally, shows up to minicamp and OTAs, not practicing.
13:07I see him like having these long conversations with T.O. where like T.O. is trying to talk sense.
13:12And so I'm like, God, can you imagine if T.O. is the one trying to talk sense into you?
13:15Anyway, he doesn't show up.
13:17He doesn't show up to, uh, some team mandated rehab assignments in Santa Clara between minicamp and training camp.
13:25Like right now, like late June, early July, when no player wants to be at the facility, he doesn't show
13:30up.
13:30He's upset.
13:31And this is where it gets murky.
13:32Um, either the Niners immediately voided his guarantees, which I find to be, I don't think that happened.
13:39I think they threatened the boy.
13:40I think they called him and said, look, dude, you better show up or we're going to avoid your guarantees.
13:44Knowing Iuke, if they said that, then he'd say, go ahead and void him, go ahead and void him.
13:49But I want you to release me or trade me to the Washington commanders.
13:53In which case I could see the Niners saying, all right, we'll do that, but let's keep this quiet.
13:57Let's not tell him.
13:58They didn't tell anyone they voided his guarantees until November.
14:01Um, I think that's, could be what happened because I've never, he never challenged this with the NFL PA.
14:08He didn't try to get his guarantee.
14:09It almost kind of seemed like he was like, please cut me, do whatever you got to do.
14:13I don't want to be here anymore.
14:14I'm tired of this stuff, which I kind of respect.
14:17And then you could sort of interpret his recent social media activity as him being upset because he thought the
14:25Niners would honor that agreement and cut him after June 1st, which they haven't done.
14:30And now he's trying to force the issue on social media, which probably won't work.
14:34But that's my best interpretation of where we're at.
14:37All right, so let me, let me just go through it again.
14:40All right, he gets hurt.
14:41They try to trade him when he's hurt.
14:43I think that that right there for me is the first time, quite honestly, that I've heard something which would
14:50at least give me some empathy for Ayuk's feelings about the organization.
14:55Because you don't, you don't sign somebody, he gets hurt seven games into the season.
15:00By the way, it's a devastating knee injury.
15:03And then you're trying to trade him.
15:06That seems, by the way, was there any interest?
15:12I don't believe so.
15:13Again, he couldn't walk and it's a devastating knee injury.
15:15I would think that, and the contract is so large.
15:18I would think that teams would want to see him on the floor before they would trade for him.
15:22Yeah, of course.
15:22So then, you know, he's missing minicamp mandatory.
15:26He's missing rehab assignments.
15:29And whether they threatened to void the guarantees or they actually did it, I don't know why there'd be a
15:34quid pro quo for that, though, Grant.
15:36Like, go ahead and void the guarantees.
15:39But we're, you know, because you can't, you're not going to cut them at that point.
15:44There's still perceived value.
15:46You want to get something back because it's going to be a massive dead cap hit.
15:50You know, if you were to cut them or trade them.
15:55So that's the one part where, like, I'm just thinking intuitively, I can't imagine that they would commit to a
16:02quid pro quo.
16:03Yeah, go ahead and void my guarantees.
16:06But you've got to trade me or cut me.
16:08It seems like it wouldn't make sense for them to agree to that.
16:11But what I don't understand is why, why I wouldn't at least challenge us with the NFLPA.
16:16Well, that's, that's the biggest thing that we know about this whole thing.
16:20And to me, the biggest tell that he was at least in the wrong in not, you know, reporting for
16:26those rehab checks or assignments is that the union always picks up a fight for this.
16:32Because it's tricky because Kyle kind of creates some double standards.
16:35Like Nick Bosa has had many off seasons where he's rehabbing and he famously stays in Florida.
16:41He doesn't come back.
16:43I don't think the Niners tell him, like, you need to be here every three weeks so we can check
16:46on you.
16:47It's so very punitive.
16:48Like, we don't trust you, Brandon.
16:49We need you here, Brandon, because we don't really care you're rehabbing, Brandon.
16:52And like, there's so many other players on the team.
16:54Like, like the Niners cleared Christian McCaffrey for week one of 2024.
16:58He told them right before the game started, I don't feel good and didn't play until out of the bye
17:02week and went to Germany.
17:04And they didn't say anything.
17:05It seemed like the Niners made a big deal of it because they don't like Brandon.
17:08And they were trying to, they tried to trade him and they wanted to get out of the deal.
17:11And this was sort of like an opening.
17:13He was upset.
17:13He didn't show up to something that was probably punitive and probably just for him.
17:17It wouldn't have been for other players who were making this much money.
17:19And maybe he deserved it.
17:21Maybe not.
17:21But I think that's, I think that's what happened.
17:24Otherwise, it just seems like.
17:25Okay, but, but even if that happened and be like, it's not fair.
17:28How come Bosa doesn't have to, why would I have to be here and Bosa doesn't have to be here?
17:31That's not fair.
17:32Well, it's, it, it really doesn't matter if contractually he's supposed to, and they wanted him to, whether it's lack
17:38of trust or punitive or whatever.
17:40My question to you would be, if he believed that, you know, the voiding of guarantees would get him traded
17:46or cut.
17:47And here we are almost, you know, eight, nine, 10 months later.
17:51Why haven't they fought the void of the guarantees?
17:56I have no idea what he was thinking.
17:59I have no idea what Brandon Aikis, but I do know that he showed up to OTAs last year.
18:03He showed up to mini camp.
18:04He didn't show up to the rehab assignments.
18:05He showed up to training camp.
18:07He was there every day.
18:08He was in the meeting rooms.
18:09He was there at the preseason games.
18:10He was there at the regular season game.
18:12He was running routes before those games.
18:14It seemed like he was trying to play along with the Niners and show teams that he was healthy and
18:19maybe rehab some trade value.
18:20And then the trade deadline passed and they didn't trade him or clear him.
18:23And then he stopped showing up.
18:25So that's what happened.
18:27You said something, by the way.
18:28You said that, you know, after the injury, maybe they thought or maybe everybody thought he was never going to
18:35be the same player again after that injury.
18:38Do you have a sense of what that knee is?
18:41Is he going to be, you know, a different player because of that injury moving forward?
18:47I mean, there's a chance, right?
18:49It was an ACL and an MCL and a meniscus.
18:52Is he going to make a full recovery?
18:54Maybe.
18:54But we haven't seen him running really.
18:56We saw him last year.
18:58We haven't seen him this year since he left the team.
19:00All of his videos are really tight on his face.
19:02Is he in shape?
19:03Can he run?
19:04What does it look like?
19:05No idea.
19:07By the way, in talking about the trade deadline, I just want to make it clear when you said that
19:11you were talking about the 2025 trade deadline that he was hoping to get moved by then.
19:15And I'm wondering if there was any interest at that point, because at that point we knew about the voided
19:21guarantees, which may have been a red flag for teams.
19:24But do you think that prior to the whatever it was, October 31st, November 1st, whatever it was last season,
19:32was it was their interest and they just didn't do it?
19:34Or was there no interest?
19:37Well, I think I've made it clear enough that he only wants to play for the Washington Commanders.
19:41And since he's already quit on one team and walked away from him, I think any other team would be
19:45absolutely insane to try to trade for him.
19:48Only team that he wants to play for is Washington.
19:50He doesn't have to play football for money anymore.
19:52He wants to play for the love of the game if he ever plays again.
19:54And that'll be with Jaden Daniels.
19:56And even Washington won't trade for him because they know the Niners are going to have to cut him eventually.
20:01And there's a possibility that Brandon really isn't going to be good anymore.
20:04So the fact that the Niners are holding on to him to possibly trade him kind of seems like not
20:10a joke, but it's just not the real reason.
20:12Like they're just trying to spite Brandon.
20:13And they have every right to do that because they feel Brandon screwed them over.
20:16And it's just sort of like an eye for an eye at this point.
20:19Yeah, and I also think that, you know, you can make the case too that why give Washington a total,
20:25you know, three months of an offseason when they're in the NFC and we're playing them rather than giving it,
20:31giving Brandon to them at the last possible moment, which I think is August 31st.
20:36But here's where we get to the present.
20:38So these videos, you know, I personally, I don't think that's the best way to get Kyle Shanahan to do
20:45anything other than to dig his heels in.
20:47And we're pretty familiar with the Shanahans in this market.
20:50But, you know, you mentioned you think this is, you know, some sort of strategy to try to get them
20:55to do something.
20:56Why didn't he just show up for OTAs and force their hand?
21:00Yeah, you know, it's not that simple.
21:02He needs to file for reinstatement with the league.
21:06He needs to send a letter to the league and to the 49ers officially filing for reinstatement to show up.
21:12And the Niners don't necessarily have to reinstate him.
21:15Like there's going to be a negotiation and he might have to give back some of his bonus money.
21:20And I mean, maybe he doesn't want to do that.
21:23Maybe he feels like it's all another humiliation that he has to go back to them and bend the knee.
21:28And he would maybe rather not do that and keep his money than play football again.
21:32I really don't.
21:32I feel like Brandon's not acting rationally.
21:35He's making a lot of very emotional decisions, which you're not supposed to do in life.
21:38And he's going to look back on this in 10 to 15 years and regret it, even if he has
21:41a point.
21:42But he can't just show up.
21:44First of all, there's a warrant out for his arrest in Santa Clara.
21:47Second of all, he needs to actually file for reinstatement.
21:50And there's going to be a financial negotiation where I'm sure the Niners want back a couple million dollars.
21:56You know, I mentioned earlier, like, have we had a follow up to the warrant for his arrest story?
22:03Like, did he get arrested?
22:05What do we know about that?
22:07He's not in California.
22:08I mean, it's so weird, right?
22:10Because he basically told on himself.
22:12He made that weird video speeding past the Niners facility in December.
22:17And then right when OTAs are about to start and, like, right after June 1st, when maybe he might show
22:23up,
22:24then they finally charge him with a misdemeanor and put a warrant out for his arrest because he apparently hasn't
22:29paid his fines.
22:30It's very strange.
22:30A lot of people in the Bay or Niner fans were speculating if the Niners called the police department and
22:36were, like, pushed a button or something.
22:37But very strange.
22:39He has a lot of hoops to jump through before he gets back on a football field.
22:42And just from the post he's putting on social media, it doesn't seem like he's prepared to jump through them
22:47yet.
22:48Yeah.
22:48I mean, I think the biggest thing missing from all of these social media posts personally as a Skins fan
22:53and wanting to see, you know,
22:55the 2023 version of Brandon Iyuk in a Washington uniform, we haven't heard anything from him other than, you know,
23:04going after his current employer versus telling us that he really wants to play football.
23:10You know, talking about the knee in great shape, him being in great shape.
23:15Like you said, a lot of head up shots or neck up shots.
23:18And, you know, that would be a better tack for him to take.
23:23But who are we to give advice?
23:24You just gave us some information, though, which I think I did not know.
23:28And I think it's been murky.
23:29You use the word.
23:30I think a lot's been murky about this.
23:32But that it's not just as easy as him showing up for the first day of training camp and forcing
23:38their hand.
23:39But still, why isn't he if he wants to play football for Washington, why isn't he going through the process
23:45of filing for reinstatement?
23:48Yeah, I think that's that's the question.
23:50And I think what the Niners learned and what people are learning about Iyuk is he's one of the most
23:54headstrong, stubborn people in the league.
23:59I mean, he's not Antonio Brown.
24:00He's not violent.
24:01He hasn't hurt anyone.
24:02He's hurting himself.
24:04He's hurting his career.
24:05And he's so prideful that he might not.
24:09It seems like he's already resigned himself to not playing football in 2026.
24:13And that video he posted a couple of days ago.
24:14I thought that was a misspeak.
24:16I thought that was a misspeak.
24:17Maybe it was.
24:18Or maybe it was a Freudian slip.
24:19I don't know.
24:20I just don't know.
24:21I don't even know where he is right now.
24:23And it seems like there's not really anyone in his circle who's advising him, even his agent.
24:27It seems like he's going rogue and posting this stuff off of motion.
24:31And he's going to do it every few days.
24:33He's just getting started.
24:35Well, all right.
24:36So, last question.
24:37By the way, we think he's in D.C. right now.
24:40Last question then for you.
24:41Like, if you were a fan of this team here, what would you want to see happen?
24:47Would you be out?
24:48Would the behavior be disqualifying?
24:50Or would you still be interested?
24:53I'd be interested.
24:54I'd be interested.
24:54I mean, I'd be interested.
24:57Look at how Javon Kinlaw has flourished in Washington.
24:59He came from the minors.
25:00He never was good.
25:02He didn't really fit in.
25:03He had knee issues.
25:05Now he's like one of the leads always being interviewed over there.
25:08It seems like he's doing pretty well.
25:09It seems like he flourishes in that locker room.
25:11I think Ayuk would be so happy and grateful to play with Jaden Daniels.
25:16And I think if you get a motivated and happy Ayuk, which only one team in the league could get,
25:22and that's Washington Commanders, you have a chance to get a top 10 wide receiver.
25:26A guy who's better than Terry McLaurin.
25:29Way better than Deebo Samuel.
25:30So, yeah.
25:31I think you guys should be all over it.
25:33I think he's going to play for you eventually.
25:35I think the Niners are going to have to cut him.
25:38ESPN's Nick Wagner, who covers the Niners, came out yesterday.
25:40And said they should have cut him in March.
25:42I mean, really, what are they gaining from this?
25:44It's their right to be spiteful, but they're not going to trade him.
25:47And so what they're getting is all these distractions, all these videos.
25:49And they can ignore them, but they're very loud.
25:52And they don't make anyone look good.
25:54And eventually, I think they're going to have to cut him.
25:55Let's see how much they can stomach.
25:58I think the videos he could put out that could make them look worse
26:01are super positive videos about himself wanting desperately to play football again.
26:06Because I don't think these videos with, you know, most people,
26:10they, they, they, I think the impression is he's crazy, he's spiteful,
26:16and he may not be all there mentally.
26:20And if I'm with you, by the way, on the player,
26:23and I've gotten in arguments with, with listeners and fans,
26:27I think at the end of 2023, he was better than Terry.
26:31And I think he was ascending.
26:32And I think he was, you know, on the verge of becoming a true star in the league.
26:36But in terms of the Niners, like, again, if it were my team, Grant,
26:41I can only speak from my standpoint.
26:43Because we went through this, actually, with Albert Hainsworth years ago
26:46and with Donovan McNabb.
26:48And everybody said, do the right thing, do the right thing,
26:50turn them loose, turn them loose, turn them loose.
26:52And really, the team didn't need to, you know, give anybody, you know,
26:57these players before.
26:58They ended up getting picks for Hainsworth and McNabb.
27:00They got a sixth rounder for McNabb that turned into Alfred Morris.
27:03Now, I agree with you, nobody's going to trade for Brandon Iyuk.
27:07But why give him to Washington for a full training camp
27:10when you could give it to, give Washington Brandon Iyuk on September 1st,
27:14or, you know, two days before the season starts?
27:17I mean, that's the way I would view it.
27:19Let me try to answer that with a question, if you allow me.
27:22Sure.
27:23What do you care if Washington gets Brandon Iyuk if his knee is torched
27:27and if he's toxic?
27:28Well, that's different.
27:29That's different.
27:30If he's really not going to be the player that he was at the end of 2023,
27:36then I would definitely just move on at this point.
27:39I'm talking about if they believe that he can be that player.
27:42But it's not just the knee.
27:44Like, it's also his attitude.
27:45It's his – I mean, that's been their biggest issue with him since 2021,
27:49the fact that he's not all in with their team,
27:51the fact that he wants to be a little bit on his own,
27:53the fact that he doesn't get along with the coach.
27:54I mean, if they think he's flat-out toxic and all about himself,
27:59then get him off the team ASAP.
28:01Like, these videos aren't good.
28:03And let Washington figure out what you already know about him
28:05if you're that sure that he's a problem.
28:08But I think what Iyuk's saying, and maybe he's right,
28:10is that they don't really think Iyuk's a problem.
28:13They think he's good.
28:14They just didn't want to pay him.
28:16Yeah.
28:17Well, I never wanted to pay him.
28:18I think you're – by the way, I'm going to retweet it.
28:22You should read Grant's story,
28:2421 steps on the deterioration of San Francisco's relationship
28:29with Brandon Iyuk.
28:31But I think, you know, even with the potential headache that he might be,
28:35you know, at least perception-wise,
28:39because you nailed it at the beginning.
28:41He was a significant reason why they made it to the Super Bowl.
28:44And so why give a team that we're going to play in week six,
28:48which, by the way, he already sort of targeted as, you know,
28:52I'm coming with the belt.
28:53I think that meant Monday night, October 19th in Santa Clara.
28:57But, yeah, look, I mean, I don't know.
29:01Chris Cooley, who I did a show with Grant for years,
29:03used to say about the noise outside the locker room,
29:07they just – it never affected – you know,
29:10these kinds of situations never affected the locker room
29:13or the organization like fans thought they, you know, they did.
29:19Now, if he shows up and is a disruption, that's different, I think.
29:23But anyway.
29:23That is different.
29:24I'm just saying, like, two years ago, the Niners won six games.
29:27People don't really remember this, but it wasn't that long ago.
29:29And when they explained why they won six games,
29:32they talked a lot about distractions.
29:33You know, that was the year that Iyuk held out the first time.
29:35Trent Williams held out in addition.
29:37And they're like, well, you know,
29:38we never really got to focus on football.
29:40Last year they won 12 games, and they were talking about how focused they were
29:44and how they didn't have those issues.
29:45And now it seems like they're kind of inviting them back.
29:47By the way, last one I lied.
29:49They should be good this year, right?
29:51I mean, if they're healthy, they should be in an incredible division
29:55with the Rams and the Seahawks.
29:57But how do you see the 49ers 20-26 working out,
30:00assuming they are a healthy football team, which they weren't last year?
30:05They should be good.
30:06I predicted they would win 10 games.
30:07They have a tougher schedule than last year.
30:09And I think last year having Robert Sala was huge.
30:12He's a top-five defensive coordinator, and he is a head coach.
30:15And Kyle Sanahan, for all of his strengths,
30:18is a little bit more of a play caller than a head coach.
30:20He's a little bit dour.
30:21He doesn't have a lot of energy.
30:22He really benefits from having someone like D'Amico or Sala next to him.
30:25And while Raheem Morris does have that energy,
30:28I don't know that he's an elite defensive coordinator.
30:31And I don't know how good the Niners' defense really is.
30:33They have Fred Warner.
30:34They have Nick Bosa.
30:35And that's kind of it.
30:37And, you know, they're competing with teams like the Rams and the Seahawks
30:40that have great defenses.
30:41So I still think they're third in their division, but they're a good third.
30:46Really appreciate the time.
30:48Great stuff.
30:48Thanks.
30:50My pleasure.
30:51Thanks for having me.
30:52Grant Cohn, everybody, covers the 49ers for Sports Illustrated.
30:57And I just retweeted the story that he wrote about 21 steps,
31:02chronological steps in the Brandon Iyuk 49ers saga.
31:07There's some interesting stuff.
31:09I think the interesting thing that Grant just, you know, told us,
31:13and I assume it to be true, is that he just can't show up.
31:18He's got to file for reinstatement back into the league based on the list that he's on.
31:22But if he's really interested in playing football again, he needs to do that.
31:27And he needs to be able to force the 49ers' hand.
31:31How it plays out after he does that, who knows?
31:35But for him, he can't proceed if he wants to proceed until they release him.
31:41Kevin Sheehan Show, the Team 980 and theteam980.com.
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