Brandon Aiyuk has been causing a wave in the San Francisco 49ers locker room. While the team was still adjusting to his request for a trade amidst no common ground being met for the contract, his unexpected appearance at the recent training camp brought forth more confusion. Unfollowing the 49ers on social media, leaking his chats with Jayden Daniels, and also potentially paying $101k in fines for missing the mandatory camp seems like a recipe for a disaster for the receiver.

However, with Aiyuk’s latest presence at the 49ers camp, it looks like he has learnt some lessons from Nick Bosa’s contract situation last season. After Bosa had been “holding out” last year and missed the training camps, he was fortunate to secure a successful deal. Yet, matters turned against the defensive end when his performance did not turn out in his favor. Potentially Aiyuk wanted to avoid being gripped by a similar situation.

Amidst the comparisons brewing and Aiyuk’s decision turning heads, hosts of the podcast SPEAK also jumped into the conversation of discussing the contract situation. This time, James Jones was replaced by DeSean Jackson, who thought that receivers carry a “stigma” with respect to every move they make. He thinks Aiyuk returning to the camp is a distraction and added, “I think receivers alone, I think we have the stigma of being a distraction, but I played at a high level. So, for me, I knew what I was capable of doing. Any team I ever played on, whatever I’m asking, I’ll go out and prove why I’m asking for that.”

Is having 1,342 yards, 7 touchdowns, and a Super Bowl appearance not proof enough that Brandon Aiyuk deserves more? That’s for GM John Lynch and the San Francisco 49ers management to decide. Subsequently, when asked about the situation, the GM remained a bit diplomatic in his dealings with the media.

“They still have another hour and change so I don’t know if he is in here but we expect all our players to report and be here,” Lynch said Tuesday morning at a pre-camp press conference. “We stated this really early, have had excellent communication throughout. I really don’t want to characterize it. Brandon is a big part of our team and we expect he will be this year.”

However, Aiyuk’s situation of having one leg almost outside the organization can affect the momentum of the whole team. It’s important to know that teams are charging well about $40k for each practice missed. While the receiver might not want to risk paying the hefty amount, it still does not convey any solution to his pending contract issue. Once again, the situation draws a reminder of how matters transpired with Bosa last year.

Nick Bosa’s situation might draw parallels to Brandon Aiyuk holding out

Last year, Nick Bosa held out for a new contract and missed 37 days of the training camp. Though the players might work out independently, training with the teammates is a whole different thing. Bosa’s start to the season was not as good as he expected, and he admitted that to the Athletic.

“I think a little bit,” Bosa admitted to The Athletic’s David Lombardi when asked if his holdout negatively impacted him. “I think I’m trying to work on stuff on the run this year that I wasn’t able to do in camp. So, those games that I mentioned, the two, I think I was thinking too much because I was trying to add something to my rush plan which is not what I want to be doing during season.”

But there’s something good that came out of all of this. Bosa was still under his rookie deal when he decided to hold off from training. He was racking up fines as high as $50k a day. But Adam Schefter later pointed out that since Bosa was in his rookie deal, he might not have to pay that huge fine because it was “rescindable.”

Bosa later earned a 5-year $170 million deal with the 49ers with $122.5 million in guarantees. Brandon Aiyuk will have to get a similar deal if he wants to end up on the $35 million-a-year club. For now, there’s a hope that Aiyuk’s fine might be “rescindable.” His showing up to the training camp might mean that things are shaping up in the right direction for the Bay Area wideout.