The 2026 Free Agency Thread

[heisenberg]

But either way you aren’t getting his agent to cut his current contract down to those levels if it’s a negotiation that starts with a current WR1 contract. Imo of course

Thats the part that confuses me though.

If release is inevitable and the contract is going to get ripped up and start from zero anyway then why does it matter if they do it beforehand.

I guess under most circumstances you wouldn't want to give the team who's going to release you any leverage so you'd just wait and then your new team wouldn't have to give any compensation but this doesn't seem to be a normal circumstance, the niners are playing hardball and if you really want to get out and have time to prepare for next year you might have to give the niners something to get it done.

My personal opinion, aiyuk and his agent would be wise to allow that to happen, he's not going to lose any money in the negotiations because we have to swap a 6th with their 7th and he could put this whole thing behind him and start focusing on next season with his bff.

But then again Ayuik hasn't exactly been known for wise decisions lately.

 

[HOF44]

No trades. Pick him up when released.

 

[Boone]

I don’t get the argument that we don’t want Deebo back because Chig can make those same catches. They play different positions. Having them both consistently on the field is going to put a shit ton of pressure on a defense.

 

[heisenberg]

No trades. Pick him up when released.

I get this sentiment but it feels like all parties involved are hurting themselves just for the sake of being stubborn.

Isn't it worth something to get aiyuk in here for the entire offseason program?

Im not saying give up much but if he is going to be a part of our plans for next year id rather give up a late round pick swap and get him now than give up nothing and get him September 1st.

That is of course working under the assumption that he tear up his existing contract and sign a reasonable prove it type deal.

Aiyuk was the first stubborn jack ass, now its the niners and if we aren't willing to give up something small to get a deal done now then you can add us to the list.

 

[KDawg]

I get this sentiment but it feels like all parties involved are hurting themselves just for the sake of being stubborn.

Isn't it worth something to get aiyuk in here for the entire offseason program?

Im not saying give up much but if he is going to be a part of our plans for next year id rather give up a late round pick swap and get him now than give up nothing and get him September 1st.

That is of course working under the assumption that he tear up his existing contract and sign a reasonable prove it type deal.

Aiyuk was the first stubborn jack ass, now its the niners and if we aren't willing to give up something small to get a deal done now then you can add us to the list.

Aiyuk and his agent would be stupid to tear up the contract.

 

[heisenberg]

Aiyuk and his agent would be stupid to tear up the contract.

Why though?

Im open to being convinced of that but I haven't heard a convincing argument yet.
Everybody on planet earth knows no team, not us not the 9ers and not any of the other 30 teams are going to honor that contract under any circumstance.

Doesn't that make it useless?

Its literally only a matter of time, so why not expedite the inevitable?

I seriously want someone to convince me otherwise because I feel like im missing something.

 

[Discobob]

Aiyuk and his agent would be stupid to tear up the contract.

But couldn't we just cut him? I understand that carries a risk that he doesn't sign with us, but the 'trade' could be contingent on him re-signing with us...

This is not me advocating for the trade, although if its just a late round pick swap, that's pretty benign.

 

[KDawg]

But couldn't we just cut him? I understand that carries a risk that he doesn't sign with us, but the 'trade' could be contingent on him re-signing with us...

This is not me advocating for the trade, although if its just a late round pick swap, that's pretty benign.

What’s the guarantee on the contract? I don’t have it in front of me. Anything not paid?

 

[Discobob]

What’s the guarantee on the contract? I don’t have it in front of me. Anything not paid?

I'm not gonna promise I'm right, but I think that all the guarantees are gone, so SF would have to eat the accelerated portion of the bonuses that they previously paid him, but we wouldn't be on the hook for anything prior to the dates in the contract. I think the next date is Sept 1st.... so if we trade for him and cut him prior to that date, I think it's completely free to us.

 

[heisenberg]

What’s the guarantee on the contract? I don’t have it in front of me. Anything not paid?

Its my understanding that there are no guarantees left on his contract, they were all voided by the 9ers.

I believe its widely known that the deadline to release him is September 1st, thats the day they owe him a huge roster bonus.

So let's assume all parties remain stubborn and he gets released on August 30th, the contract is torn up just the same as if he had done it himself and now he has to get a team to sign him a week before the regular season starts.

Somebody will give him a shot no doubt but nobody is gonna pay him much of anything now that they have to release a player who's been with them all of training camp and then get him up to speed and playing condition as fast as possible (we all know how that plays out when you skip camp) best case scenario he's contributing by October worse case he pulls a hammy because he wasn't in playing shape due to missing all of camp.

The alternative is he essentially tears up the contract now allowing some form of trade and a new deal and he's in camp and potentially ready to go week one.

For him the benefit i guess would be not having to go through training camp, some veterans do seem to like that so I could see that being a motivator.

For us we dont lose any draft compensation even if it is minimal but the cost of bringing in a guy a week before the season starts far outweighs the cost of a late round swap in my opinion.

The niners have almost nothing to gain by waiting until the end of August other than to send a message to other players not to pull this bullshit with them.

Other than a possible desire to skip camp I see no benefit to aiyuk to not tear up his contract right now and a player in his position having missed almost 2 years should be smart enough to know how important offseason work and training camp are to him right now, if he comes in a week before the season he'll most likely be useless for at least a month if not all year.

 

[heisenberg]

so if we trade for him and cut him prior to that date, I think it's completely free to us

Now im even more confused.

Why would we trade for him then cut him under the assumption that hes just going to sign with us immediately?

None of that is necessary, if aiyuk was willing to do that then he would just work out a new deal that coincided with the trade.

I get it, players dont normally do that because it behooves Them to become a free agent and gain bargaining power over 31 teams but this is a unique situation possibly requiring a unique solution.

 

[Discobob]

Now im even more confused.

Why would we trade for him then cut him under the assumption that hes just going to sign with us immediately?

None of that is necessary, if aiyuk was willing to do that then he would just work out a new deal that coincided with the trade.

I get it, players dont normally do that because it behooves Them to become a free agent and gain bargaining power over 31 teams but this is a unique situation possibly requiring a unique solution.

I agree.... If we were to trade for him, the ideal situation would be to just "rework" his contract into a 1 yr 10M deal (just making up a number).

I was addressing the idea that if we trade for him we are taking some level of risk because of his contract. In the off chance we trade for him and he isn't willing to rework his contract, we could just cut him with no strings attached and then go from there.

 

[heisenberg]

I agree.... If we were to trade for him, the ideal situation would be to just "rework" his contract into a 1 yr 10M deal (just making up a number).

I was addressing the idea that if we trade for him we are taking some level of risk because of his contract. In the off chance we trade for him and he isn't willing to rework his contract, we could just cut him with no strings attached and then go from there.

Gotcha.

We'd probably look a little silly though if we traded for him and then had to cut him.

If it were me, id trade up to our later 6th round pick to get him in house now assuming hes willing to do that new deal you suggested or something reasonable.

That price is worth it to get him up to speed and in shape rather than rush him in last minute.

 

[Conn]

Thats the part that confuses me though.

If release is inevitable and the contract is going to get ripped up and start from zero anyway then why does it matter if they do it beforehand.

I guess under most circumstances you wouldn't want to give the team who's going to release you any leverage so you'd just wait and then your new team wouldn't have to give any compensation but this doesn't seem to be a normal circumstance, the niners are playing hardball and if you really want to get out and have time to prepare for next year you might have to give the niners something to get it done.

My personal opinion, aiyuk and his agent would be wise to allow that to happen, he's not going to lose any money in the negotiations because we have to swap a 6th with their 7th and he could put this whole thing behind him and start focusing on next season with his bff.

But then again Ayuik hasn't exactly been known for wise decisions lately.

It’s a strange situation for sure. I’m not sure there’s one rational actor in the bunch between the player, the 49ers, and us tbh.

 

[Riggo44]

Again, I think they upgraded and I think Chig improves on his 2025. But how far do we expect him to improve? And is that a realistic expectation?

Ertz: 123 YAC; 2.3 per rec.
Konk: 341 YAC; 6.1 per rec.

 

[KDawg]

Ertz: 123 YAC; 2.3 per rec.
Konk: 341 YAC; 6.1 per rec.

Yup, for the same general stat line.

Again… I think we upgraded at TE.

But I think we’re of the overall mindset he’s going to change this offense. If he goes 70/750/5 I think he’s had a very successful year. And I think that is realistic.

 

[heisenberg]

It’s a strange situation for sure. I’m not sure there’s one rational actor in the bunch between the player, the 49ers, and us tbh.

This is why agents put roster bonuses into contracts early in the offseason so that teams cant hold players hostage until a week before the season starts.
One of the things making this situation so unique is that not only did the 9ers void his guarantees but he didn't dispute it.

Now they're in some weird middle ground where they dont owe him anything but hes still under contract anyway.

I know very little about the intricate details of nfl contracts but in my uneducated opinion it feels like aiyuks agent flubbed up big time when he didn't demand a release in return for not disputing the voiding of guarantees.

 

[Discobob]

One of the things making this situation so unique is that not only did the 9ers void his guarantees but he didn't dispute it.

I suspect he regrets the decision to not contest the voiding of his guarantees. He could have agreed to drop the grievance if they cut him.

 

[Simeon]

I agree.... If we were to trade for him, the ideal situation would be to just "rework" his contract into a 1 yr 10M deal (just making up a number).

I was addressing the idea that if we trade for him we are taking some level of risk because of his contract. In the off chance we trade for him and he isn't willing to rework his contract, we could just cut him with no strings attached and then go from there.

Trade for him with a conditional low 27 draft pick, based on him making the opening roster this year. If he sucks or if he’s not ready to rework his contract then cut his ass at the end of training camp.

 

[Dlts20]

Did we possibly dodge a bullet?