Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk isn’t expected to be ready for Week 1 when the team opens the 2025 NFL season on the road against the Seattle Seahawks. Due to his recovery from significant knee injuries, many anticipate Aiyuk starting the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, which would sideline him for at least the first four games.
Aiyuk damaged his ACL and MCL in October. Earlier this week, head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed the wideout will not be ready for the start of training camp, a development that comes as little surprise given the severity of his injury.
Still, the 49ers remain optimistic about Aiyuk’s recovery.
“Brandon’s doing a tremendous job coming back,” general manager John Lynch said this week. “These guys that are incredibly skilled athletes, they tend to heal a lot faster. It’s kind of incredible how well he’s healing, and he’s putting in the work. We’re proud of Brandon, and we’re looking forward to him being part of this team moving forward.”
So, when could Aiyuk realistically return to game action? NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco recently provided insight into a potential timeline during an appearance on Bay Area radio station KNBR.
“I would expect him to miss the first four games of the season, to be placed on PUP,” Maiocco said. “And then, because he seems to be ahead of schedule, or even ahead of where they projected him to be, then I think that once they’ve kind of taken that off the table—he’s not going to play in the first month of the year—then they can really look and say, ‘Okay, you know what? Let’s open that window in Week 5.'”
That would allow Aiyuk time to begin practicing in Week 5, potentially easing him back before activating him within that 21-day window to do so.
“There’s a chance they would open the window in Week 5, and have him practice a couple of weeks, and then, get him back out there,” Maiocco continued. “But my guess is, if I were just to take a wild stab, I would just say somewhere like Week 6 to Week 8. It would be probably the most logical, reasonable, and rational timeframe where we can expect Brandon Aiyuk back on the field.”
Maiocco notes that if Aiyuk can return to his 2023 form, his lucrative contract extension, viewed by some as an overpayment, could end up looking like a steal, especially given how quickly the wide receiver market has evolved.
You can listen to Maiocco’s entire interview below.
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