The San Francisco 49ers have long been expected to part ways with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk this offseason. After voiding his contract when he didn’t show up to practice, the 49ers are widely believed to be waiting to release Aiyuk after June 1 or trade him to an interested team before hand.

General manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have both made several statements, including this weekend at the annual league meetings, that Aiyuk has played his final down in San Francisco. The 49ers have added Mike Evans and Christian Kirk this offseason to a receiver room that already included Ricky Pearsall and Demarcus Robinson.

However, 49ers owner Jed York stirred the pot on Monday by acknowledging the team isn’t obligated to move on from Aiyuk, and he could put on the red and gold uniform again.

“(Aiyuk) is a very talented guy, would love to bring him back into the fold,” York said at the league meetings. “And if not, I think he’s a valuable asset other people would want. And we’re going to make sure that we get value and we bring talent into our building.”

That would be a shock to the league because of how open the 49ers and Aiyuk have been about their displeasure with each other and the expected separation.

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Aiyuk was expected to return from an ACL injury and contribute in the 2025 season after signing a four-year, $120 million extension with the team in 2024, before the injury. Despite nobody in the building having seen Aiyuk since the debacle began, meaning there is no clear update on how well he has recovered from his injury, York is not closing any doors to a return.

“I think anything’s possible,” York said. “We want to make sure that we have as talented of a roster as possible. First and foremost, he needs to get healthy and be able to perform. I think once that happens, he’s a really, really good football player.”