The San Francisco 49ers had a long bout with star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. Aiyuk's name was floated in trade rumors for several months due to his and the 49ers' talks on a contract extension stalling. The negotiations came to an end on Thursday when news broke that Aiyuk and San Francisco agreed to a four-year contract extension. Had the agreement not happened though, Aiyuk could have found himself on another team, specifically, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The 49ers nearly pulled off a three-team trade with Aiyuk that would have included the Denver Broncos, per Diana Russini of The Athletic.
“The 49ers only were willing to trade Brandon Aiyuk if they could get a top-flight WR to replace him. They offered a third-round pick to Denver for Courtland Sutton, and then would’ve dealt Aiyuk to the Steelers, but the Broncos declined the offer… So, he stays in SF,” Russini wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Albert Breer of NBCS Boston expanded on Russini's thought with what the deal would have looked like:
“This scenario, as I understand it, would've had the 49ers landing 2nd- and 3rd-round picks from Pittsburgh for Brandon Aiyuk, flipping the 3 to Denver. The Steelers didn't want to part with a player for Aiyuk… All's well that ends well—Keeping Aiyuk was always SF's preference,” Breer wrote on X.
49ers remain strong with Aiyuk on roster
Aiyuk was cryptic about his stance with the 49ers while negotiations were ongoing, as ClutchPoints previously noted. Thankfully, both sides were able to get a deal done.
San Francisco drafted Aiyuk with the 25th pick in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He had a promising start to his professional career. Aiyuk amassed 748 yards and five touchdowns in 12 games during his rookie year.
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He nearly replicated his production the following season before breaking out in 2022-23, Aiyuk pulled in 1,015 yards and eight TDs on 78 receptions in 17 games, but he did not stop there. The 26-year-old comes off a 2023-24 season where he totaled a career-high 1,342 yards (ranked seventh in the league) along with seven TDs in 16 games.
Aiyuk has steadily improved during his four years in the NFL, and his trajectory has him taking another jump in the Fall of 2024. He is on the cusp of earning his first Pro Bowl and possibly All-Pro honor. Moreover, he helped lead San Francisco to their Super Bowl 58 runner-up finish.
With Aiyuk remaining on the roster, the 49ers have a greater chance to make their championship goals a reality.
