Brandon Aiyuk is eligible to come off the physically unable to perform list next week, but John Lynch said the receiver’s return is “not close.”
It’s not that Aiyuk has had a setback, the San Francisco 49ers general manager said Thursday on his weekly KNBR radio appearance. It’s that Aiyuk’s Oct. 20 knee injury involved both the ACL and MCL ligaments, making it a longer recovery.
“I keep coming back to (there are) different levels with these ACLs,” Lynch said. “And Brandon had a fairly significant injury involving a lot of different things in his knee.”
Lynch said Aiyuk is “tracking well,” as shown by the receiver attending practices from training camp onward and running shadow routes while his teammates go through individual drills. Still, it doesn’t appear as if the team will open Aiyuk’s practice window until next month at the earliest.
While taking Brock Purdy video, this up and comer caught my eye … pic.twitter.com/7razXGqpZu
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) September 17, 2025
The news is a bit better regarding tight end George Kittle and the hamstring strain he suffered in Week 1. Kittle, who is on injured reserve, must sit out Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars and the upcoming Thursday game against the Los Angeles Rams. He’s eligible to play the following Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“George is doing really well,” Lynch said. “He’s tracking well, putting in a lot of good work like George always does.”
As for Brock Purdy and his injured toe, Lynch said the quarterback “looked really good” in a Wednesday practice, in which he largely served as the team’s starter. The 49ers are leery of setbacks, but so far, Purdy’s progress has been steady, and he appears on track to start against the Jaguars.
Finally, Lynch said defensive end Nick Bosa is scheduled to have his torn ACL repaired on Friday. Unlike Aiyuk, Bosa’s injury is “clean” and involves only the ACL ligament in his right knee.
Lynch said the 49ers would do their due diligence when it comes to trades — the trade deadline is Nov. 4 — but for now the team would rely on Bryce Huff, Mykel Williams and the current group of 49ers defensive ends.
“Prior to Nick getting hurt, we’re always — that’s our job — to look at the market and see who might become available,” Lynch said. “Our history shows, when you’ve got guys like Trent Williams, Christian McCaffrey, and the list goes on and on of players we’ve acquired via trade, that we’re not afraid, and we’ve been effective in doing that.”
“We’ll see what’s out there at the appropriate time,” he continued. “But right now, we’re going to rely on the guys we have, and we believe in our group.”
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