San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch was asked whether he had a realistic belief that Brandon Aiyuk would play for the team this season:

Realistic? I’m not sure. Hopeful? Yeah. That’s kind of where I’ll leave that. He continues to rehab. Hopefully, like I’ve always said, we’re a better football team when Brandon’s out there. I hope that’s the case. I think that’s probably what it is, is hope right now. I wish it were a little bit more than that.

That does not sound like a front-office member expecting the return of one of the best players on the roster.

The follow-up to Lynch was how he’s processing whether Aiyuk’s decisions damaged the locker room, and how the team is compartmentalizing it:

No. 1, we’re focusing on the guys that are out here. Because they’re a tremendous gro

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