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49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk Says He Feels Pressure to Perform with New Deal

Brandon Aiyuk was asked about his drawn-out, contentious contract negotiation on Tuesday. Here's what he said courtesy of the 49ers p.r. department.

Grant Cohn

49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk catches the ball around Lions defensive backs C.J. Gardner-Johnson, left, and Cam Sutton for a touchdown in the third quarter of the Lions' 34-31 loss in the NFC championship game in Santa Clara, California, on Jan. 28, 2024.
49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk catches the ball around Lions defensive backs C.J. Gardner-Johnson, left, and Cam Sutton for a touchdown in the third quarter of the Lions' 34-31 loss in the NFC championship game in Santa Clara, California, on Jan. 28, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK
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SANTA CLARA -- Brandon Aiyuk was asked about his drawn-out, contentious contract negotiation on Tuesday. Here's what he said courtesy of the 49ers p.r. department.

Q: Do you feel more pressure on you after inking a deal like this to perform better?

AIYUK: "Obviously yes, but that was the reason I wanted to get paid in such a manner, because that's the type of player I believe I am and that's the type of player I want to continue to be and that's the type of player I strive to be. I think it's more putting that pressure on myself, and (I'm) four pockets full."

Q: How much did your teammates help you through this process?

AIYUK: "I talked to George (Kittle), I talked to (Nick) Bosa a lot, I talked to Deebo (Samuel) a lot. Just trying to figure out certain things, get their feel for certain things. Being able to talk to them through the process was huge. But also being able to see them and be around them every single day for now, just inserting myself right back in."

ME: There was no progress for months and months. What do you think pushed this over the finish line?

AIYUK: "Like Kyle (Shanahan) said, two sides wanted to get a deal done."

Q: In terms of conditioning and stamina, how ready are you to face the Jets on Monday night?

AIYUK: "I'm ready to go."

Q: Did you understand you had to be the squeaky wheel to get what you want?

AIYUK: "Yeah, a little bit. A squeaky wheel has to be silent sometimes and know when to squeak. Just that whole balance, but yeah."

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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