As the Brandon Aiyuk saga continues to drag out, drawing all of the attention across the NFL landscape, the Pittsburgh Steelers quietly remain in the mix for the standout San Francisco 49ers wide receiver.
According to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, who appeared on NFL Network’s NFL Gameday Saturday afternoon, the Steelers have made a “strong” trade offer and contract offer to the 49ers and Aiyuk and now sit and wait as things continue to play out.
“At one point, it looked like he was headed to the Cleveland Browns. At another point, maybe the New England Patriots, they made a strong offer as well, both trade and contract, as did the Browns. Now, it seems the Pittsburgh Steelers are the most likely destination,” Rapoport said of the Aiyuk situation, according to video via his Twitter page. “They made a strong trade offer and they have made a strong contract offer to Brandon Aiyuk, but I only say most likely destination if he goes anywhere, because over the course of the last, let’s say 24 to 48 hours, the 49ers have taken maybe a little bit of a different approach than they had over the previous several weeks.
“They met with Brandon Aiyuk. They re-engaged on contract talks to try to bring him back and essentially keep him home. What remains unclear is which direction it is going to go. The Steelers are still in the mix. The 49ers are still in the mix. It is undecided right now who Brandon Aiyuk is going to play for.”
While it’s unclear what the Steelers have offered the 49ers to acquire Aiyuk via trade, or what the Steelers have offered Aiyuk via contract extension, a report surfaced Friday that the 49ers were asking for a second- and third-round pick from the Steelers, which is obviously something that the Steelers and GM Omar Khan have balked at.
Previously, the 49ers were asking for a receiver in return, but the Steelers very clearly don’t have one outside of George Pickens to send the 49ers, which is something they’re simply not going to do. That reportedly led the 49ers to start “nosing around the league” looking for a potential third team to get involved in the trade, but nothing has transpired just yet.
That reported ask from the 49ers for second- and third-round picks is rather steep and would completely wipe out the Steelers’ Day 2 selections in the 2025 NFL Draft. Not only that, it could potentially wipe out the entire middle rounds for the Steelers, who could also potentially lose a fourth-round pick in the draft. That is based on the conditions of the Justin Fields trade with Chicago, which would turn a sixth into a fourth if Fields plays 51% of the snaps for the Steelers in 2024.
Clearly that is not something the Steelers want to do, since they are typically a team that builds through the draft.
For now, things are still in a holding pattern, especially after the 49ers re-engaged with Aiyuk and his agent on contract extension talks, which could throw a wrench into things. The Steelers still have a major need at the receiver position, but it was always possible that Aiyuk could simply change his stance and want to return to San Francisco.
The 49ers, one way or another, want a resolution on the Aiyuk situation soon. It has dragged on for four months and with the start of a potentially great season for San Francisco drawing closer, the 49ers want to rid themselves of the distraction one way or another, whether that’s with a new deal with Aiyuk, or by trading him.
Though insiders like Rapoport and colleague Mike Garafolo still believe the eventual outcome is that Aiyuk gets traded to the Steelers, there still seem to be some hurdles to get past in the situation.
Pittsburgh has a strong offer in place though. Now it seems like the ball is in San Francisco’s court. It’s a waiting game.
