An agreement on a long-term contract extension between Brandon Aiyuk and the San Francisco 49ers does not seem at all close. In fact, in the week of the 49ers' first preseason game, NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco reported that it "appears more likely than ever that the 49ers are willing to make a trade".
Maiocco's report follows one at the weekend from Cam Marino of NFL Draft Buzz that the Cleveland Browns and the New England Patriots were the most likely trade partners in an Aiyuk deal. Marino then reported on Monday that the Pittsburgh Steelers had been "gaining traction" as a destination for Aiyuk.
San Francisco's preference will likely still be to not trade Aiyuk and putting together a package that would convince the 49ers to a deal will not be easy.
But, as speculation continues to swirl, let's explore what each of those three teams could offer to lead the 49ers to make a move they have continually insisted they don't want to do .
Cleveland Browns
While the 49ers will likely want a first-round pick in any deal for Aiyuk, the Browns would probably be able to get away with not sending one, if they dealt their current number one receiver to San Francisco.
A free agent next offseason, Amari Cooper would surely thrive in the 49er offense even if only for a year. He has four 1,000-yard seasons in the last five years and has been extremely productive for Cleveland in an offense that is of the same family as the scheme Kyle Shanahan runs with San Francisco.
And, as A to Z Sports' Wendell Ferreira laid out, a swap of Aiyuk for Cooper would be very financially beneficial for the 49ers, saving them $12.914 million in cap space.
The issue on the Browns' end is that they would be dealing a receiver whose deal they have recently reworked.
For the 49ers, the downside is that Cooper is 30 and isn't somebody they will likely be willing to pay next offseason, whereas Aiyuk is an ascending talent at 26.
But if the Browns were to package a receiver who could clearly help the Niners win in 2024 with a second-round pick, San Francisco might find that difficult to resist. Alternatively, the Browns could potentially tempt the 49ers with an offensive line restoration project in Jedrick Wills.
Wills is a free agent next offseason and has not impressed in Cleveland, but, were he to benefit from a change of scenery, the 49ers could sign him long-term at a reasonable price and make the 2020 first-round pick their long-term right tackle. Either way, the Browns would likely need to part with a starter and a pick to make a trade acceptable to the Niners.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers may have to part with a player more central to their long-term plans in order to have a hope of boosting their wide receiver corps with the acquisition of Aiyuk.
There aren't Steelers receivers with whom they would be willing to part that would interest the 49ers in a trade package, so they might have to look to the defensive side of the ball.
Pittsburgh probably wouldn't be too enthused at the idea of parting with edge rusher Alex Highsmith, whom they signed to an extension last offseason, but he is the kind of talent the Steelers would probably need to include in a deal to get Aiyuk without surrendering a first-rounder.
Financially a swap of Highsmith for Aiyuk might be appealing for the 49ers as Highsmith does not have guaranteed money on his deal. Still only 27, Highsmith would also give them a long-term solution opposite Nick Bosa off the edge, with Leonard Floyd very much a short-term option.
A second-round pick and Highsmith is still short of what the 49ers would ideally want for Aiyuk, but it might be enough to get it done.
New England Patriots
It's difficult to see a scenario in which the Patriots would not need to give up a first-rounder to land Aiyuk. There isn't a talent on their roster that would they potentially be willing to deal who could make accepting a day-two pick palatable for San Francisco.
In an ideal world for the 49ers, they would surely love to acquire right tackle Mike Onwenu to give them a much-needed long-term answer at a problem position. However, after signing a lucrative three-year contract with New England this offseason, that's not something the Patriots would be willing to entertain.
So, if the Patriots want Aiyuk they will likely need to surrender their 2025 first-rounder, a difficult pill to swallow for a rebuilding team, and add a sweetener on top of that.
In such a scenario, Matthew Judon would stand as the best option to serve as that sweetener, the edge rusher having been involved in a seemingly fractious contract saga with New England this offseason.
Judon is 31, coming off a torn bicep and is a free agent next year, so he would be an acquisition made purely with 2024 in mind, but he would give the 49ers a formidable edge rotation by joining Bosa, Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos.
With an extra first-rounder and a veteran to make their defense even better in the coming season, it's a trade that would set the 49ers up well for the short term and the long term. Still, it's dubious whether the Patriots would be willing to make it.
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