As the Brandon Aiyuk saga continues to roll on down the tracks toward some sort of inevitable decision one way or another, the Pittsburgh Steelers continue to be a hot name thrown into the mix for the standout San Francisco 49ers wide receiver.
However, based on multiple reports Monday night and Tuesday morning, the Steelers are not in the mix despite checking in on Aiyuk.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter doubled down on that Tuesday afternoon during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, stating that he doesn’t expect the Steelers to acquire the big-name receiver via trade.
“I don’t expect Pittsburgh to be a landing spot at all,” Schefter said regarding the Steelers and Aiyuk, according to video via McAfee’s YouTube page. “I think Pittsburgh, like a lot of teams, checked into this. Here’s the price it would take from the 49ers. Here’s the price it would take from Brandon Aiyuk. And every team has to make a decision about whether or not that would work for them. And inevitably with most teams, it’s not gonna work.
“And that’s why it’s a hard trade to do. And if you’re Brandon Aiyuk, there are gonna be limited opportunities. So ultimately you have to make the decision, ‘Am I better off taking an offer from a team that wouldn’t be my first choice to go to?'”
Things really started to heat up from a speculation standpoint on social media Monday night as there were some potential leaks that Aiyuk and the Steelers were close to linking up. That hasn’t come to pass.
Following a report late Monday night that the Steelers were “no longer an option” for Aiyuk, and then a report Tuesday morning from ESPN’s Mike Reiss that “barring a change, the Steelers do not appear to be a potential trade destination any longer,” it’s becoming pretty clear that while the Steelers certainly have had interest in Aiyuk, Steelers GM Omar Khan isn’t going to meet the 49ers’ asking price for him.
The 49ers’ asking price has been rumored to be at least a first-round pick and potentially more. That is a steep price for Aiyuk on top of the trading team needing to pay him to $30 million or more per season on a long-term extension.
The Steelers might be willing to pay Aiyuk that type of contract, which would make him the highest-paid player on the team. But would they be willing to give up a first-round pick and more in a trade package to land the receiver ahead of a 2024 season in which quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are only on one-year deals?
Aiyuk might want to join the Steelers, considering he said so himself this offseason during a sit-down interview on “The Pivot Podcast” with Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor and Channing Crowder. But the 49ers have a clear asking price, and Khan hasn’t acquiesced to it.
Based on multiple reports, which now include Schefter’s, the Steelers aren’t going to be the landing spot for Aiyuk should he be moved. It is a very fluid situation though and things can change in a hurry. Right now though, it’s not looking great for the Steelers landing the Aiyuk based on the asking price from San Francisco.
