SANTA CLARA, Calif. — San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk had his breakout game last week in New York, but for those who missed it, he jumped right back into the picture Sunday night against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Facing a third-and-7 at the Eagles’ 38, Niners quarterback Nick Mullens found Aiyuk on a quick receiver screen. Aiyuk made a couple of Eagles defenders miss and raced toward the end zone with Philadelphia safety Marcus Epps closing in.
As Epps went low to make the tackle, Aiyuk leaped into the air and cleanly hurdled him to cover the final 5 or so yards for the 38-yard touchdown. The play was ruled to be a rushing touchdown since Aiyuk was behind Mullens when he threw it.
AIR AIYUK!
Brandon Aiyuk hurdles into the end zone! @THE2ERA
📺: #PHIvsSF on NBC
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/8qeyjAHMyI pic.twitter.com/IrBtZu83mU— NFL (@NFL) October 5, 2020
Aiyuk’s first two NFL touchdowns are technically rushing scores. He had a 19-yard scoring run in last week’s win against the New York Giants. The 49ers traded up to draft Aiyuk with the No. 25 overall pick in April’s NFL draft.