The real reason the 49ers seem to want to cut ties with Brandon Aiyuk

The Brandon Aiyuk debacle gets stranger by the week.

We know the 49ers voided Brandon Aiyuk's guarantees in July and he hasn't filed a grievance with the NFL Players Association about it, which means he probably did whatever the 49ers claim he did.

But they haven't told us what it is he did that effectively ended his relationship with the team. On Friday, general manager John Lynch finally spoke for the first time since the news broke that Aiyuk's guarantees have been voided and he most likely will get released at the end of the season.

"Brandon's rehabbing," Lynch told NBC Sports Bay Area. "He's trying to get back on the field. Some things were reported this week that happened a long time ago. I think both sides probably have moved on from that.

"There are things that happen, there's basic rules, team rules, league rules. I can tell you, as a team, we don't have many. The ones we do are very important to us, and when they're not adhered to—this is the first time it's happened in our tenure. We felt like we had no other recourse as to exercise those things. And so, we have.

"Like I said, we've moved on from it. We want nothing more for Brandon to come back and be a part of this team because he's a really good football player, and he's done a lot for our team, and we're very appreciative for that. We're better when he's on the field."

To be clear, Lynch still didn't say exactly what Aiyuk did, but he gave clues. Here's my best guess as to what happened.

1. Aiyuk probably skipped a rehab assignment supervised by the 49ers in the offseason, or more than one, so they voided his guarantees before training camp.

2. Aiyuk tried to play nice for a couple months by showing up to practices and meetings in hopes that the 49ers would give him back his guarantees.

3. The 49ers refused to give him back his guarantees and still wanted to clear him before the trade deadline to showcase him for possible trades.

4. That's when Aiyuk stopped showing up to practices and meetings and ceased all communication with the team.

The 49ers want us to believe that they still like Aiyuk and value him as a football player, and yet they also seem to want us to think that Aiyuk is a malingering diva who doesn't love football and has given them no choice but to punish him and eventually release him.

I don't buy it. If the 49ers organization really valued Aiyuk as a top 10 wide receiver in the league and a key part of their future along with Brock Purdy, they'd overlook his absences. That's how it works.

I think the 49ers voided his guarantees because they never wanted to extend him in the first place -- Kyle Shanahan did. The 49ers lowballed Aiyuk and then wanted to trade him. Ultimately, Shanahan got his way and Aiyuk got his money without ever bending the knee. But the people who wrote his contract also put in clauses that they could use to void it if they wanted out.

And the 49ers clearly want out -- that's why they tried to trade him this offseason. That's why I see this purely as a business decision. The 49ers don't want to pay Aiyuk anymore. And that's their prerogative.

But they're not going to get anything for him. And if he makes a full recovery, he's going to be an excellent wide receiver for at least a couple more years on another team.

This whole debacle could blow up in the 49ers' faces if it hasn't already.

Talk about organizational malpractice.

Read more