Over the past few weeks, wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk has done enough damage to his image that not only have the San Francisco 49ers shown little reason to welcome him back, but other NFL teams may also think twice before pursuing him. Even so, he still appeared to have one lifeline in the Washington Commanders, where he wanted to play in the 2026 season. That, too, now seems to be slipping away after his comments about Jayden Daniels’ mother. As the situation unfolded, Aiyuk’s former coach, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, responded by taking a shot at him.

“His mouth has gotten him in trouble, I think, a bit too much,” T.J. said on Speakeasy. “I would not be surprised if we never see him play football again. It would not surprise me…Because we could be joking around, but then once you do and say that, it’s a wrap…Regina (Daniels’ mom) ain’t like that statement. I guarantee she ain’t like that statement.”

The development in Brandon Aiyuk’s saga gained momentum after the wide receiver’s latest social media post, criticizing the Commanders’ quarterback. It all went down after Daniels was spotted laughing when a fan shouted, “F— Brandon Aiyuk.” As that happened, Aiyuk responded with a short video clip, taking a dig at his former college teammate.

“Probably going to text me and talk about something. You on my team now, you follow my rules,” Aiyuk said, noting that Daniels would text him and asking him to follow his rule before adding, “Boy, I’m a grown a– man, boy. You have to stop running behind your mamma, and I might believe what you’re talking about.”

That statement may have ended Aiyuk’s chances of landing in Washington. Ever since his fallout with the 49ers, the Commanders have reportedly kept tabs on the wide receiver’s situation. While they were interested in the possibility of signing him, reports suggest they had no intention of giving up draft capital to acquire him.

And it’s not hard to see why the Commanders were interested in Aiyuk. He and Jayden Daniels played together at Arizona State before the receiver declared for the NFL Draft. On top of that, Commanders general manager Adam Peters was part of the 49ers’ front office when the team selected Aiyuk with the 25th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. So the familiarity was there, and so was the interest. But that no longer appears to be the case.

The 28-year-old started taking a dig at the 49ers, calling them “stupid” and noting that they’re scared of letting him go. But fast forward to now, and his criticism is toward the Commanders’ quarterback. For now, it seems like his behavior is most likely to affect whether the Commanders would pursue him. As for his future ahead of the 2026 season, that remains to be seen.