We have been tracking the Brandon Aiyuk situation for a couple months now, and speculation has mostly cooled off since the critical pressure point of the 2024 NFL Draft. If a trade was going to happen, it would have made the most sense to take place during the draft when there is draft capital that can immediately help the 49ers. That being said, they have still not reached a contract extension with Aiyuk, and according to NFL insiders, it may not be close.
“The teams that checked in on [a trade] got the sense that no, they weren’t interested in doing it. That’s what they said as well. So now it’s back to the table to try to get a contract extension done,” Mike Garafolo said on The Insiders via NFL Network on Monday. “And it doesn’t seem like they’re any closer at this point. Don’t expect to see Aiyuk around for anything that’s voluntary and let’s see about the mandatory stuff as well with him.”
As of this point, much like Cameron Heyward with the Steelers, he hasn’t skipped anything mandatory. Players “hold out” from the voluntary stuff pretty often to instill some urgency into contract negotiations. But it doesn’t sound like things are moving in a positive direction between Aiyuk and the 49ers.
“If the 49ers at some point realize, well, we can’t get this thing done, does he push their hand and say, well look, either it’s a contract or get me outta here,” Garafolo said. “We’re not there, there hasn’t been a trade request…Every sense that I’ve gotten from speaking to folks familiar with the progress of the talks is that they’re not close at this point.”
It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to think the 49ers could deal him later in the summer. They already have a solid stable of receivers in Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and Jauan Jennings, and they added Ricky Pearsall in the first round of the draft and Jacob Cowin in the fourth round. That is a stacked WR room, which could make the decision a little easier if Aiyuk does indeed make a trade request at some point this offseason.
Last we heard, GM John Lynch doubled down on not entertaining trade offers for Aiyuk, stating that the 49ers continue to work on a long-term deal.
Every day that passes adds another element of risk to the negotiations for the 49ers. Justin Jefferson is in the middle of his own contract talks, and he should reset the WR market with a lucrative new contract. If and when that does happen, that higher number will figure into Aiyuk’s negotiations to a certain extent. That could be part of what is taking so long, as Aiyuk has every reason to want to wait until that deal gets done to give himself additional leverage.
Of course, that is a double-edged sword for the Steelers if they make a move to trade for him. If the 49ers have been negotiating with no luck, then it is reasonable to assume his asking price is fairly high. The Steelers would have to give up some serious draft capital and then turn around and make Aiyuk one of the two or three highest-paid players on the roster.
