49ers: Why signing of Brandon Aiyuk, Javon Kinlaw is news

The 49ers have signed Javon Kinlaw and Brandon Aiyuk to their rookie deals

The San Francisco 49ers have locked down both of their first round picks today, signing both defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk to their rookie deals. After a week of bad news for the Niners, this is a bright sign to end the week.

Usually, the signing of rookies is not huge news to report since every team does so at a rapid pace. However, given the cirumstances in San Francisco, this is a pretty big deal that the Niners and their rookies were able to get it done.

After injuries to Kendrick Bourne and Deebo Samuel, morale was running low in San Francisco; locking down their two first rounders before training camp to avoid any holdouts is a huge win for the Niners. Especially considering both Kinlaw and Aiyuk will be thrust right into action from day-one, knowing they will not skip a beat when they are finally allowed to gather again is a huge sigh of relief.

Why these deals matter now

After the injury to Samuel, Aiyuk will not only be asked to stretch the field (the reason he was drafted to begin with), but he will now be asked to take on some of the roles of his counterpart. Look for Aiyuk to take on a large amount of manufactured touches on screen passes and quick hitters.

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When considering which rookie playmakers to add to your fantasy football teams, Aiyuk must now be near the top of those rankings. Not only will Aiyuk now see a ton of catches in Deebo’s absence, but he will also have a full training camp to get into the playbook and get into shape on the field as well.

On the defensive side of the football, Kinlaw will also be asked to step in right away for the 49ers. This past offseason, the Niners chose to re-sign defensive tackle Arik Armstead, but then traded DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts for a first round pick (used to take Kinlaw).

As Solomon Thomas has not lived up to the hype of the third overall pick that he was back in the 2017 NFL Draft, the Niners would love to use him on a rotational basis instead. This means Kinlaw must be ready to go week one next to Armstead, Nick Bosa, and Dee Ford.

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Regardless of whether or not Kinlaw starts as expected, every team needs a solid rotation of defensive linemen as they shuffle on and off the field. Getting the deals done with Brandon Aiyuk and Javon Kinlaw done before training camp is a massive win for the 49ers.