It sure looks like the San Francisco 49ers are going to trade All-Pro wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk before Week 1 against the New York Jets.
Aiyuk and the 49ers are mired in a major contract quagmire that has impacted their relationship big time. He held out of mandatory minicamp and is a “hold in” from training camp right now. In between, the former first-round pick requested a trade.
Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports that the 49ers have a frame work for a deal in place with two AFC teams. Others are obviously in the mix. Here, we rank the five most logical Aiyuk trade scenarios from San Francisco.
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5. Jacksonville Jaguars deal for Brandon Aiyuk
The Jaguars were involved in Aiyuk trade talks leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft. They had just lost WR1 Calvin Ridley in free agency and needed to find another top target for Trevor Lawrence. Instead, Jacksonville exhausted its first-round pick on former LSU wide receiver Brian Thomas. Now that the Jags have given Lawrence a huge contract extension, they might want to rethink things. Aiyuk would obviously take over as his favorite target.
- Jaguars get: Brandon Aiyuk
- 49ers get: Brian Thomas, 2025 2nd-round pick
4. New England Patriots get Drake Maye WR1
If the Patriots want rookie No. 3 pick Drake Maye to succeed at quarterback, they need to find him more skill-position talent. It’s as simple as that. Still only 26 years old, Aiyuk is coming off a 2023 season in which he caught 75 passes for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns. He’d be just that for the Patriots. The only hold up here is that New England is unlikely to offer up its 2025 first-round pick in a trade given that it would be slotted pretty high.
- Patriots get: Brandon Aiyuk
- 49ers get: Kendrick Bourne, Cole Strange, 2025 2nd-round pick
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3. Blockbuster Davante Adams, Brandon Aiyuk trade
Hear us out. Davante Adams played college ball in Northern California. He’s a native of the area. The six-time Pro Bowler has also openly talked about wanting to play for a contender. Meanwhile, whispers of a potential trade made the airwaves this past offseason. A swap of Aiyuk for Adams would make a ton of sense. He’s sign an extension with San Francisco. Meanwhile, the Raiders add a younger receiver as they continue with a rebuild. This would be a win-win.
- Raiders get: Brandon Aiyuk, 2025 3rd-round pick
- 49ers get: Davante Adams
2. Brandon Aiyuk gets his wish and heads to Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh is one of the teams that has most been linked to Aiyuk. It is also said to be his preferred landing spot, with the wide receiver’s social media activity speaking to such. It makes sense. The Steelers need a true No. 1 wide receiver for whoever is going to start this coming season. Meanwhile, the 49ers can add a receiver of their own to replace Aiyuk as part of the package for the All-Pro.
- Steelers get: Brandon Aiyuk
- 49ers get: George Pickens, Dan Moore, 2025 2nd-round pick
1. Cleveland Browns pull off blockbuster trade
This still makes the most sense of any potential Aiyuk deal. Several reports indicate that five-time Pro Bowler Amari Cooper would come back to the 49ers in a trade. He’s entering the final year of his contract and had some issues with the Browns before agreeing to a restructured deal. In this scenario, the Browns get a younger receiver for embattled quarterback Deshaun Watson. It just makes too much sense.
- Browns get: Brandon Aiyuk
- 49ers get: Amari Cooper, 2025 2nd-round pick