Brandon Aiyuk has been at the center of the biggest controversy surrounding the San Francisco 49ers this week.
Aiyuk, a second-year wide receiver out of Arizona State, did not start in the 49ers’ Week 1 game. To make matters worse, he played only 26 snaps and didn’t catch a single pass.
Here’s what we know so far about the situation. Aiyuk “tweaked” his hamstring during the preseason. Because of his limited availability in practices, others pushing for playing time got more practice reps. Trent Sherfield was inserted into the starting lineup for Week 1 in his place, which has led some to believe the situation surrounding Aiyuk has more to it than just a minor injury.
Regardless of whatever the situation may be, Aiyuk isn’t paying attention to the distractions. In fact, he revealed during a press conference on Friday that he’s been off social media entirely, according to David Lombardi of The Athletic.
Brandon Aiyuk says he hasn’t been on social media for a while so he doesn’t really know what’s been said this week.
“I had a couple people call me and tell me I was trending on Twitter.”
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) September 17, 2021
With that being said, Brandon Aiyuk now understands there’s going to be “really high moments and really low moments” throughout his career.
The 49ers wide receiver is now trying to “refocus” and become the receiver the team is expecting.
Brandon Aiyuk: “I’ve already started to understand in this league it’s never really just a steady path to the top. You’re gonna have really high moments and really low moments, but I think it’s all about how you refocus, how you rebalance and get back on track afterwards…”
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) September 17, 2021
It’s hard to imagine Brandon Aiyuk not playing a significant role for the 49ers this season.
The former Arizona State star is too talented not to see the field. And don’t forget about how strong a rookie season he had in 2020.
As long as Aiyuk can stay healthy and be consistent in practice, he should end up having a big year despite his slow start.
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