It’s supposed to be a simple, administrative matter. It apparently, in the case of 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk, is not.
Aiyuk reportedly filed the appropriate paperwork to be reinstated from the reserve/left squad list on Wednesday. Per the NFL, Aiyuk has not yet been reinstated.
The delay underscores the possibility that the NFL and the 49ers are working together to buy the team some time, especially if the team’s goal is to recover up to $13 million without having to chase him around for it.
Again, it’s supposed to be a simple process, like it was when Brett Favre applied for reinstatement from the reserve/retired list in 2008. It should be a simple box-checking exercise.
And with Aiyuk not reinstated, it complicates his plan to report to the team’s facility on Friday. Although the 49ers are free to meet with Aiyuk and his new agent, Drew Rosenhaus, the 49ers will have no pressure to make a decision regarding what to do with Aiyuk unless and until the league office reinstates him.