July 13, 2026, 7:15 p.m. PT<\/p>\n
Former NFL receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh isn’t backing off his stance on Brandon Aiyuk, and he’s now pouring cold water on the receiver’s stated preference to land with the Washington Commanders.<\/p>\n
Houshmandzadeh, who served as Aiyuk’s personal wide receivers coach, has spent months publicly airing his frustration with his former client. Now, Houshmandzadeh is questioning whether Aiyuk plays again at all.<\/p>\n
“I would not be surprised if we never see him play football again. It would not surprise me,” he said.But I’m almost certain he ain’t going to the [Washington] Commanders. That ain’t going to happen.”<\/p>\n
Houshmandzadeh’s criticism for Aiyuk’s actions date back to December 2025, when the 49ers placed Aiyuk on the reserve\/left squad list<\/a> after voiding the guaranteed money in his four-year, $120 million extension. Houshmandzadeh said then that Aiyuk would “regret” walking away from that money<\/a> and later when he told the “Speakeasy” podcast that any team signing Aiyuk needed to be careful<\/a>. By late June, with Aiyuk publicly campaigning for a release to sign with Washington, Houshmandzadeh escalated further, saying Commanders general manager Adam Peters “should be fired”<\/a> the day he signs Aiyuk and warning that Aiyuk would bring the same dysfunction to a new building.<\/p>\n With all of Aiyuk’s recent social media antics<\/a> continuing to bubble over, Houshmandzadeh appears ready to call it a career for the former 49ers<\/a> first-rounder. Aiyuk remains on the 49ers’ roster, and would need to apply for reinstatement to be released or traded.<\/p>\n