The San Francisco 49ers are a better team with Brandon Aiyuk on it. It is extremely unlikely that the 49ers would get a trade package from any team in the NFL that would make them better for the 2024 season. Sure, they could get premium draft picks, but nothing that will help them “win now” as much as Aiyuk will.
That is a big reason why many have presumed that Aiyuk holds all the cards when it comes to the contract negotiations. However, the tides seemed to have turned in a major way.
San Francisco 49ers May Have The Upper Hand Now With Brandon Aiyuk
According to Peter Panacy of FanSided:
Three teams emerged as legitimate trade candidates: the Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers, yet Aiyuk’s desire to sign off on a trade hinged on signing an extension, and he reportedly turned down the idea of going to either the Browns or Pats.
That left the Steelers. And while other reports sufaced that suggested a trade was in place between San Francisco and Pittsburgh, no deal has gone through.
We might have just figured out why.
According to Sports Illustrated NFL insider Albert Breer, writing in his weekly MMQB column, the Steelers weren’t exactly prepared to give Aiyuk top dollar on a new extension if traded there.
Breer wrote:
“The San Francisco 49ers’ star didn’t want to go to New England, which offered him more than $30 million per year in its proposals, or the Cleveland Browns. The Steelers’ price point was less than $28 million, which put Pittsburgh right in the neighborhood the Niners were inhabiting—with Mike Tomlin’s presence there the drawing card.
That, in turn, pushed Aiyuk back to the table with the Niners.”A couple of things from this.
First, the only team willing to give Aiyuk what he wanted was New England, and Aiyuk reportedly rebuffed that idea.
Second, choosing between an offensive-friendly 49ers offense where he’s been the leading receiver the last two years is probably the better option than going to a run-first Steelers offense under coordinator Arthur Smith and with a declining veteran quarterback, Russell Wilson, and an inconsistent youngster in Justin Fields.
In short, Aiyuk can choose to stay put and make things work with the Niners, or he could go to a worse situation, all for about the same kind of money.
It would seem that the 49ers may be able to offer Aiyuk a lucrative deal and offer him the opportunity to win a Super Bowl. Something not every team can offer.
Aiyuk, who is under contract with the 49ers for $14.1 million in 2024, has attended practice recently, but hasn’t worked out. In addition, although he could sign early this week, he will likely not appear in San Francisco’s pre-season finale.
Aiyuk might have no choice but to return to San Francisco if the Steelers do not offer a considerable advantage over the 49ers.
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