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Brandon Aiyuk has played his last snap with the San Francisco 49ers, even though he is still technically a member of the organization. Selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Arizona State product was once one of the game’s better young receivers and an efficient leader of San Francisco’s passing attack. A perfect fit for head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense, Aiyuk helped San Francisco make the Super Bowl with a dominant 2023, recording 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns while earning Second-Team All-Pro honors. This impressive season earned him a four-year, $120 million contract, but this proved to be a poor investment. The wide receiver played in just seven games in 2024, recording 25 receptions for 374 yards and no touchdowns on 47 targets before suffering a season-ending injury. He then went off the deep end, abandoning the team in 2025, missing his rehab appointments, and effectively demanding his release. The 49ers will grant that request before long, and Brandon Aiyuk has made it clear that he wants to join the Washington Commanders and reunite with quarterback Jayden Daniels, as the two played together in college. However, that isn’t going to happen, as the Washington Commanders signed Stefon Diggs to fill the starting spot opposite Terry McLaurin. And now that Keenan Allen signed with the Indianapolis Colts, this could be the end of the road for the wideout. However, while contenders probably won’t want to put up with the wideout, Bleacher Report’s Mike Chiari believes Brandon Aiyuk could land with a rebuilding roster. “At this point, Brandon Aiyuk feels more like a reclamation project than a player who a contending team would be able to count upon,” Chiari writes. “Because of that, a rebuilding team with a suspect wide receiver group such as the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, or Las Vegas Raiders may make the most sense.” Brandon Aiyuk Linked to Rebuilding Teams After Keenan Allen Signing Nobody denies that Brandon Aiyuk is (or was) a talented wide receiver, but his years-long track record of poor decisions makes him a massive off-field risk. Because of this, he might not make sense for a rebuilding team with a young, impressionable quarterback. While veteran Kirk Cousins is expected to start for the Las Vegas Raiders, the long-term fate of the franchise rests in the hands of Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. The Raiders don’t want Mendoza to start this year, but rookie quarterbacks tend to play if the veteran can’t win games, and the present-day version of Cousins has taken a step back from his peak. Even if Mendoza stays sidelined for the duration of the season, Brandon Aiyuk would be a negative influence on the locker room and isn’t the type of player you want to have around a young franchise quarterback. To a somewhat lesser extent, this also applies to the Cleveland Browns. Shedeur Sanders is losing the quarterback battle to veteran Deshaun Watson, but it’s safe to assume both quarterbacks will start throughout the 2026 season. If Sanders has even the slightest chance of being a franchise quarterback, then Cleveland should stay away from Aiyuk. Fit With Veteran Quarterbacks Nobody denies the Miami Dolphins have what could easily be the worst roster in football, especially at the wide receiver position. With Tyreek Hill gone and Jaylen Waddle in Denver, first-year head coach Jeff Hafley will see newly-signed quarterback Malik Willis try to make it work with Malik Washington, Tutu Atwell, and Jalen Tolbert as the top receiving options. It’s hard to think of a more underwhelming trio than that, but it might not be bad enough to justify a Brandon Aiyuk signing. While every team in the league hopes to make the playoffs at this stage in the offseason, it’s hard to envision a world where the Miami Dolphins actually do it. This team took on a record-setting amount of dead money to move on from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, and they have fully embraced a rebuild. With this in mind, Brandon Aiyuk is not a player who can positively change a team culture, and he’s not good enough to singlehandedly win games for this team. With no long-term or short-term upside, Miami is probably better off letting him sign elsewhere. The New York Jets, meanwhile, are all-in on old friend Geno Smith. Smith has been around the block for a while and can likely handle a subpar locker room influence like Brandon Aiyuk. Head coach Aaron Glenn needs his team to show some signs of life in 2026 if he wants to keep his job, so perhaps Aiyuk would be a good fit and provide a legitimate threat for this passing attack.