Almost overnight, the Washington Commanders have leveraged the league’s most significant asset pool this offseason into a roster capable of making a legitimate playoff push in the NFC this season.
New general manager Adam Peters entered the offseason with the most cap space in the league and the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Peters has now built out a core that includes former LSU Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels, running back Austin Ekeler, and Pro Bowl center Tyler Biadasz, on offense, alongside a defense featuring newcomers Dante Fowler, Bobby Wagner, and Jeremy Chinn, which will be led by new head coach Dan Quinn.
Even though the Commanders already boast playmaking wide receivers Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson, Peters, and Washington have the opportunity — and the resources, to add another dynamic weapon to Daniels’ arsenal in the passing game.
Washington Commanders’ No-Brainer Brandon Aiyuk Trade Proposal
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk seems to want to be a Commander.
If that’s the case, and given the uphill climb Peters and the Commanders have to overtake the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East, as well as the urgency to maximize the window to surround Daniels with elite young talent while the quarterback is on his rookie deal, Washington should pull out all the stops to land Aiyuk.
Over at CBS Sports, analyst Cody Benjamin put together a trade proposal that lands Aiyuk in exchange for a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
“Aiyuk by himself is probably worth a touch more than a first-rounder,” Benjamin admits, writing for CBS. “The Philadelphia Eagles, for example, sent a first- and third-rounder to the Tennessee Titans for A.J. Brown in 2022, and unlike Brown at the time, Aiyuk is coming off a career year. The Brown deal occurred during the draft, however, and the Commanders aren’t in dire need of a splashy upgrade out wide, with Terry McLaurin already in tow.
“Couple that with the 49ers owning more leverage than Aiyuk in contract talks, and securing a Day 1 pick via trade might actually be considered a major San Francisco victory this late in the offseason. Seeing as Washington is just kicking off a new regime, the Commanders could end up owning an early or mid-first-rounder in 2025, enhancing the appeal of their pick.”
Benjamin is probably correct that Aiyuk could fetch the 49ers more than a first-round pick. However, if this is an offer on the table, the Commanders would be wise to accept it by any means necessary.
Aiyuk, 26, remains in the prime of his career and is coming off a stellar 2023 season which saw him catch 75 passes for a career-high 1,342 yards with seven touchdowns.
Perhaps most importantly, 49ers QB Brock Purdy posted a nearly flawless 126.8 passer rating when throwing Aiyuk’s direction, underscoring his potential impact on Daniels’ development as a simultaneous deep-threat and reliable security blanket for a young quarterback.
While the Commanders have every motivation to trade for Aiyuk, and the resources to secure him long-term (upwards of $87.4 million in cap space in 2025), the 49ers could strongly consider this deal to net a premium asset to continue building around Purdy, who is about to get much more expensive once San Francisco can finally pay him as one of the premier quarterbacks in the league next offseason.
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