The Brandon Aiyuk trade picture just got a lot more interesting, and Miami has unexpectedly entered the conversation.
The Dolphins are being mentioned as a possible landing spot for the disgruntled 49ers receiver, even though the fit looks strange at first glance. The team is in a full-scale rebuild after cutting Tyreek Hill and trading Jaylen Waddle, but Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski made the case this week that Miami belongs on the list of real options.
At the center of that argument is Bobby Slowik. Miami’s new offensive coordinator worked as San Francisco’s passing game coordinator in 2022, which was the same season Aiyuk put together his first 1,000-yard year and earned second-team All-Pro honors. That connection gives the Dolphins a clear line to a player whose trade market has already become messy.
Aiyuk has made his preference obvious. He only follows his wife, Jayden Daniels, and the Washington Commanders on Instagram, and he also posted a “Go Commanders!”
video that left no doubt about where he wants to go. Washington has the interest, but the 49ers have not budged on their asking price.
San Francisco is refusing to simply release a player owed $130 million, and it wants real value back in a deal.
That standoff is what opens the door for other teams, and Miami fits the profile of a club that can at least explore the idea. Aiyuk remains under contract through the 2028 season, which gives a team several years to build around him while the Commanders situation stretches deeper into the summer.
The trade market, though, comes with plenty of baggage. Aiyuk has not played since suffering a serious knee injury in the 2024 season.
He also went through stretches without meaningful communication with the 49ers organization. On top of that, an arrest warrant was issued in North Carolina tied to a misdemeanor exhibition-of-speed charge after he posted a video of himself driving nearly 100 mph past Levi’s Stadium.
Those issues have made this a complicated pursuit from the start, and the arrest warrant only added another layer to a market already struggling to find a team willing to pay the price.
Still, Miami’s receiver situation makes the need hard to ignore. The projected No. 1 wideout, Malik Washington, finished 2025 with just 317 receiving yards. Tutu Atwell, Terrace Marshall Jr., and Jalen Reagor are all more reclamation projects than proven answers, and draft pick Chris Bell suffered a late-season ACL tear and remains uncertain for 2026.
Against that backdrop, Aiyuk looks like exactly what the Dolphins do not currently have: a proven receiver who has already crossed the 1,000-yard threshold and is still only 28 years old, even if the injury and off-field questions remain part of the equation.
In Other News...
49ers Suddenly Linked To A Brandon Aiyuk Trade With QB Stakes
Brandon Aiyuks situation has only grown murkier for the 49ers, with the receiver not having played since October 2024 and his status around the roster increasingly difficult to ignore. Once viewed as part of the long-term offensive core, he now sits at the center of a conversation that has less to do with production and more to do with whether San Francisco can still count on the relationship at all.
Into that uncertainty comes the kind of speculative trade chatter that tends to follow a disgruntled star, and it comes with quarterback implications attached. Any move built around Aiyuk would force the 49ers to think beyond the receiver room and into their broader quarterback plan, especially with Mac Jones future in San Francisco already pointing toward a short stay and a possible eventual hunt for a starting job elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Safety Battle Already Has One Newcomer On Shaky Ground
The 49ers added Patrick McMorris in late April, giving the safety room another name to sort through as camp approaches, but his path looks narrow from the start. McMorris spent part of 2024 in Miami, where he appeared in six games before moving on to the practice squad circuit, and he arrives in San Francisco with the kind of profile that usually needs a strong summer to stand out.
Instead, the early read is that he has work to do just to stay in the conversation. Questions about his tackling, range and burst have made him a longshot for a regular-season spot, which leaves him fighting for a place in a crowded room that already has more established and higher-upside options. For now, the more realistic outcome appears to be another practice squad stint, unless he can change that evaluation before the 49ers have to trim the roster. [Read more 🡒]
One Under-the-Radar 49ers Addition Could Finally Settle Left Guard
The 49ers spent much of the offseason looking for reliable answers along an offensive line that has been in flux, and the left guard spot is still one of the cleaner training camp battles to watch. Chris Foerster has kept that competition open, with Robert Jones and Bret Toth among the names in the mix, while Toths value may stretch beyond one position since he is also expected to handle backup center duties no matter where he lines up.
For a team trying to make Brock Purdys life easier and keep the offense balanced around its established playmakers, that kind of stability matters as much as flashier additions on either side of the ball. Jones, in particular, has drawn attention as a low-profile pickup with the kind of experience and efficiency that can quietly settle a spot the 49ers have not fully locked down yet, even if the final call is still unresolved. [Read more 🡒]