{"id":21723,"date":"2024-12-28T11:46:26","date_gmt":"2024-12-28T11:46:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=21723"},"modified":"2024-12-28T11:46:26","modified_gmt":"2024-12-28T11:46:26","slug":"49ers-almost-traded-brandon-aiyuk-for-pro-bowl-wide-receiver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=21723","title":{"rendered":"49ers Almost Traded Brandon Aiyuk for Pro Bowl Wide Receiver"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<div>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Brandon-Aiyuk-e1735239679268.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Brandon-Aiyuk-e1735239679268.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Brandon-Aiyuk-e1735239679268.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Brandon-Aiyuk-e1735239679268.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"49ers Almost Traded Brandon Aiyuk for Pro Bowl Wide Receiver\" width=\"780\" height=\"438\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p>San Francisco 49ers&#8217; wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk on the field before kickoff against the Arizona Cardinals<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The <\/span>San Francisco 49ers <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> season has <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">been marred<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> by consistent disaster. Multiple injuries to star players, late-game blunders, and a Week 16 playoff elimination have all led to the question: how did this happen? One critical juncture was contract negotiations involving wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Would the 49ers trade their 2023 leading target or scoff at paying him $30 million <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">per year<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">? San Francisco chose the latter, but with two weeks remaining in the 2024 season, it is fun to imagine a different future.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The tumultuous negotiations dragged on longer than necessary. Something Aiyuk admitted responsibility for after putting pen to paper. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The drawn-out talks nearly led to a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers but were halted after Kyle Shanahan raced up the stairs to interrupt the call.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">While both sides want to put the offseason distraction <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">in the rearview mirror<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, especially after Aiyuk\u2019s season-ending knee injury, it is hard to ignore what could have been.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Steelers were not the only team Aiyuk <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">was nearly dealt<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> to this offseason. <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In fact,<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> the Washington Commanders almost struck a deal for the now $120 million man.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Brandon Aiyuk\u2019s Connected to Washington<\/h2>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The San Francisco 49ers and Washington Commanders had been connected all offseason about a potential trade involving Aiyuk.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The rumors started around the NFL Draft, with reports stating San Francisco was eyeing draft picks and receivers Terry McLaurin or Dyami Brown. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Commanders counter-offered with Jahan Dotson instead.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">A trade never came to fruition, and Dotson <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">was later traded<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> to the Philadelphia Eagles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Amid the constant rumors, Aiyuk poured gasoline on the fire throughout the offseason. <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">First, <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">it was an appearance<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> on <\/span>\u201cThe Pivot \u201c <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> indicating Washington as one of his three preferred destinations, if not the 49ers. He then <\/span>posted Commanders\u2019 practice film <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> to TikTok, something he was not supposed to have. <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">And finally,<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> the infamous post of the wideout saying, <\/span>\u201cThey don\u2019t want me back,\u201d <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> while face-timing Washington\u2019s rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">It was messy, and Aiyuk made his intentions clear. Pay me or trade me. And a trade was something the 49ers were close to achieving.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>49ers Near Trade<\/h2>\n<p>According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> the San Francisco 49ers were willing to trade Brandon Aiyuk to the Commanders in exchange for Pro Bowl wide receiver Terry McLaurin.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In Week 17 of the NFL season, it is obvious the Commanders declined to do so. But it is easy to believe a trade would have happened had Washington agreed to part ways with McLaurin.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The need was evident, Washington had the salary cap space, and Aiyuk wanted to play with Daniels.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">On San Francisco\u2019s side, general manager John Lynch was on the phone about to trade Aiyuk to Pittsburgh. They were ready to wash their hands of the wide receiver. And by acquiring McLaurin, San Francisco could have saved money. Something the front office has been trying to do with Brock Purdy\u2019s looming extension.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">To make matters worse, McLaurin has been healthy in 2024. While injuries are unpredictable, Aiyuk has missed 10 games this season. His knee injury may also keep him sidelined for part of 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Maybe it is because the 49ers season has been a disaster or that 2025 is around the corner, but having McLaurin\u2019s 73 receptions, 1,029 yards, and 12 touchdowns on the roster will always be one of the more intriguing what-ifs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Sterling Bennett is a Heavy.com contributor covering the NFL. He has half a decade of experience as a sports broadcaster at 95.7 The Game covering the San Francisco 49ers as part of the weekly &#8220;Overtime&#8221; show, where he covered Super Bowl 58. Bennett was the Golden State Warriors Network Coordinator from 2020-2024, where he was responsible for all gameday radio broadcasts, including the 2022 NBA Finals. More about Sterling Bennett<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover the tumultuous contract negotiations involving Brandon Aiyuk and the San Francisco 49ers. How close was he to being traded?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":21724,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21723","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>49ers Almost Traded Brandon Aiyuk for Pro Bowl Wide Receiver - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=21723\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"49ers Almost Traded Brandon Aiyuk for Pro Bowl Wide Receiver - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Discover the tumultuous contract negotiations involving Brandon Aiyuk and the San Francisco 49ers. 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