In the NFL, twists and turns happen constantly, especially in contract sagas.
That was the case on Tuesday as standout San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and his contract extension drama with the franchise took a major turn. The Arizona State product played one of his last hands in an effort to get what he feels he’s worth with a new contract by officially requesting a trade, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Prior to Tuesday, Aiyuk had expressed his frustration with the situation through videos on TikTok and posts on social media, but he had never requested a trade. Now, he has, which could open up the floodgates.
While the 49ers are adamant that they have no interest in trading him and could still hold control over him for the next three seasons as he plays on the fifth-year option in 2024 and then could be franchise tagged two years in a row, there are some teams that make a great deal of sense in a trade for the standout receiver.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, as they have been all offseason in the Aiyuk saga, are one of those teams.
For ESPN Insider Dan Graziano, the Steelers are one of the top potential landing spots for Aiyuk.
“This has been the team most commonly connected with a potential Aiyuk trade all offseason, and it would make some sense…Aiyuk would make a sweet running mate for Pickens, who’s extension-eligible for the first time next offseason,” Graziano writes regarding the Steelers as a landing spot for Aiyuk. “Unlike some of the other teams on this list, the Steelers have the cap space right now to absorb Aiyuk’s $14.124 million salary, which they would technically have to carry for at least 24 hours before they could officially sign him to the extension. (And yeah, it obviously goes without saying that any team trading for Aiyuk would have to sign him to an extension.)”
Along with the Steelers, the Washington Commanders, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers were listed as potential landing spots in a trade for Aiyuk.
The Steelers have the draft capital and the financial room to make a move for Aiyuk,. The problem is, the wide receiver market from an extension standpoint has skyrocketed, making it a more significant, expensive price tag for the team that would acquire Aiyuk.
According to an early June report from 49ers insider Michael Silver, San Francisco is offering Aiyuk $26 million per year. That puts him well under the recent pay scale of receivers who landed new contracts, such as Detroit’s Amon-Ra St. Brown, Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson, Philadelphia’s A.J. Brown, Miami’s Jaylen Waddle, and more. Additionally, according to Garafolo, the 49ers have not made a new contract extension offer to Aiyuk since May, leading to his frustration.
Aiyuk seems pessimistic about a long-term deal getting done in San Francisco, so that could lead to a move, especially as the season draws closer and he has now officially requested a trade. Previously, it was reported that the Steelers and 49ers had a deal in place before it fell apart during the draft, which came just a few days after the Steelers restructured Alex Highsmith’s contract to free up more cap space, potentially signaling a move for a receiver.
Pittsburgh still has a massive question mark at receiver behind Pickens, so a move for a veteran like Aiyuk seems logical at least at face value. Making him the team’s highest-paid player, moving significant draft capital and potentially overshadowing Pickens in the process seems unlikely though.
Putting him alongside Pickens in Pittsburgh is quite intriguing though, considering he’s an ideal complement to the big, physical Pickens. Aiyuk is a great route runner, one who can be considered a technician at his craft. Having that elite-level route runner opposite Pickens is paramount for the Steelers offensively, something they lost this offseason with the trade of Diontae Johnson and haven’t replaced.
It will be very interesting to see what happens in the coming days and weeks with the Aiyuk situation. It’s been very clear throughout the offseason that the Steelers were a logical landing spot via trade. Now, we just have to sit and wait.
