One of the strangest parts of the 49ers season has been the sporadic performance from wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. The expectations were high for Aiyuk after an exciting rookie year when he racked 60 receptions for 748 receiving yards and seven total touchdowns. However, the 2020 first-round pick has struggled to get touches all season.
Things have trended in the right direction recently, though. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has offered some effusive praise for Aiyuk’s improvement in practice over the past month, and his on-field performance has reflected that. After recording just 96 receiving yards in the first six games of the season, Aiyuk hauled in four catches for 45 receiving yards against the Bears and six receptions for 89 yards and a touchdown in the past two weeks.