In all this Brandon Aiyuk contract hubbub going on, there is another action item the 49ers will need to figure out sooner rather than later. Per Tom Pelissero, 49ers head of health and player performance Ben Peterson is headed to the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks to be the new VP of player health and performance.

This makes Peterson a true professional sports renaissance man as he previously worked for the NHL before coming to the 49ers. This also creates a job opening and another need for the team.

Peterson came to the 49ers after they fired previous strength and conditioning coach Ray Wright into a new role overseeing medical and strength-training groups.

Wright was on the wrong end of a string of seasons where injuries piled up, the most notable being the 2018 “season from hell” that had then-quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo’s season ended in Week 3 after a knee injury. Garoppolo’s injury was one of many you couldn’t point the finger at Wright for, but muscle pulls, strains, and freak injuries kept coming and it was clear someone would be held accountable.

With Wright gone the 49ers went to the Super Bowl in Peterson’s first season. The injury bug reared its ugly head numerous times in the strangest ways (like taking the kicker out of the 49ers home game against Seattle), but the injuries were much less than prior seasons, though I think some of you may disagree.

The 49ers have been victims of the rest of the NFL poaching their staff, but haven’t had to deal with other professional sports leagues doing the same. If both of the above are happening, it probably means the front office is doing something right.

As for who can replace Peterson, The Athletic’s David Lombardi has some good names: Dustin Little who is head trainer and Dustin Perry who is the head strength coach. As far as outside, the 49ers poached Peterson from the NHL, so they could go that route again.