Breaking Down Brandon Aiyuk's $120M Extension

Michael Ginnitti
Michael Ginnitti, Managing Editor & NFL/MLB ExpertAugust 31, 2024
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After a 6-month standoff that may not have gotten anyone anywhere in the long run, the San Francisco 49ers & WR Brandon Aiyuk agreed to a 4 year, $120M contract extension this week, keeping the 26-year-old on the books through the 2028 season.

Contract Terms

Aiyuk’s $120M new money extension represents the 5th largest value among Wide Receivers sliding in just under Amon-Ra St. Brown’s $120.01M deal in Detroit. It’s also the 4th largest contract ever handed out by the San Francisco 49ers:

Nick Bosa ($170M)
Trent Williams ($138.06M)
Jimmy Garoppolo ($137.5M)
Brandon Aiyuk ($120M)
Colin Kaepernick ($114M)

Signing/Option Bonuses

The Niners built in a three-bonus structure to Aiyuk’s new deal, including a $23M signing bonus ($11M to be paid out up front, the remaining $12M to be spread out along with 2024 salary payment), a $22.85M option bonus due in 2025, & a $24.9M option bonus due in 2026.

This multiple bonus format allows for salary cap to be spread out across a maximum 5-years, tempering overall cap hits early on in the contract.

Average Salary

At $30M per year, Aiyuk ties Tyreek Hill as the 5th highest average paid WR in the game (Jefferson, Lamb, Brown, St. Brown, Aiyuk/Hill). However, unlike some of the other top WR deals, Aiyuk’s contract isn’t back-loaded with fluffy salary in order to inflate the overall contract APY.

When factoring in his previously exercised $14.124M 5th-year option, the total value average on this contract drops down to $26.8M. The practical guarantee on this contract comes in at 3 years, $76M, or $25.3M per year.

Guarantee Structure

Aiyuk secures $45M fully guaranteed at signing, including his $23M signing bonus, $1.125M base salary for 2024, and $20.875M of 2025 compensation. On April 1, 2025, another $31M from the contract will become fully guaranteed (all 2025 salary plus a $24.9M option bonus in 2026). That $76M represents the full guarantee & practical/minimum value of the contract out of the gate.

When compared to other WR’s who extended out of a contract that had 1 year remaining on it, this $76M practical guarantee ranks:

1. Justin Jefferson, $110M
2. CeeDee Lamb, $100M
3. Amon-Ra St. Brown, $77M
4. Brandon Aiyuk, $76M

Salary Cap Structure

Aiyuls’ 3-bonus structured deal offers very favorable salary cap hits over the next 3 seasons, before things spike over the $42M mark in 2027/2028. If the Niners are interested in keeping Aiyuk around after the 2026 season, a salary conversion or outright extension will likely be on the table before his age-29 year.

Brandon Aiyuk’s Cap Figures
2024: $5.725M
2025: $11.191M
2026: $16.223M
2027: $42.282M
2028: $44.158M
2029: $14.545M (potential void dead cap)

The extension lowers Aiyiuk’s 2024 cap hit by $8.399M, while his $11.2M hit in 2025 is less than half of what a potential franchise tag would have represented next February. This is a contract structure that shouldn’t hamper the Niners from operating as needed during the next 2 offseason.

Cash Flow

Aiyuk secures $24.125M cash for the upcoming season (a $23M signing bonus + $1.125M base salary). This represents a $10M raise from his previous 5th-year-option salary.

Aiyuk will see $49M over the next 2 years, & $76M over the next 3 years, the logical/practical minimum on this contract.

Annual Cash & Rankings

Annual Cash Cumulative Cash Cumulative Cash Rank
$24,125,000 $39,150,000 7th
$24,875,000 $49,000,000 7th
$27,000,000 $76,000,000 5th
$28,124,000 $104,124,000 2nd
$30,000,000 $134,124,000 4th

Concluding Thoughts

The will they won’t they back and forth of this negotiation was exhausting, but the end result seems to be best for all parties.

One of the points to spotlight on this deal is a lack of any guarantee or early available cash in the 2027 & 2028 portions of this deal. San Francisco treated this as a true 3 year contract (including the already present $14.1M salary), with a very favorable cash flow for Aiyuk to buy in to.

Amon-Ra St. Brown secured what seems like a better contract than Aiyuk ($30.0025M per year, $77M guaranteed), but the cash flow structure of his deal tells a VERY different story.

YEAR 1 Brandon Aiyuk Amon-Ra St. Brown
Thru
2024		 $24,125,000 $17,866,000
Thru
2025		 $49,000,000 $35,276,000
Thru
2026		 $76,000,000 $63,386,000
Thru
2027		 $104,124,000 $87,366,000
Thru
2028		 $134,124,000 $123,376,000

As you can see here, Aiyuk’s deal carries a much more balanced cashflow, whereas St. Brown snuck in a $36M salary to 2028 in order to see his overall APY push past $30M. Both players probably play out their deals through 2027 based on age, after which Aiyuk will be $16.8M richer than ARSB.

The devil is always in the details.


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