Top priority: Ignore the WR questions, plow toward another NFC Championship Game.

It’s likely not going to matter how many times Kyle Shanahan, John Lynch or any player dismisses the rumors about the receiver room. They’ll continue to come. Until or unless the Niners lock up Brandon Aiyuk to a massive deal that works for multiple years, the questions will be asked ad nauseam. It’s simply how the world turns. See a storyline: pound it into oblivion. Unless Aiyuk is willing to sit out the season, it makes no sense for the Niners to break up their stud WR corps. Any assets obtained in a trade now likely won’t help lift a Lombardi Trophy in February 2025. The Niners should keep the core together, shrug at bi-weekly questions on the topic and continue to dice up defenses. It might stink for Aiyuk in the short term. The second-team All-Pro is worth well more than his $14.1 million salary in 2024, but he could be staring at a $30 million-per-year payday if he gets to the market in ‘25. The question is whether he will sit out if he doesn’t get it this year in San Francisco.