49ers 'potential' trade would send Pro Bowler packing to create cap space

Could the San Francisco 49ers shock the world this summer and trade away their primary wide receiver?

Deebo Samuel's status as San Francisco's premier wideout is clear, especially given the uncertain future of Brandon Aiyuk in a 49ers uniform.

Teams all over the National Football League are making offers for Aiyuk, and it wouldn't be shocking to wake up one day in July or August and find that San Francisco's general manager John Lynch has dealt Aiyuk to the highest bidder.

The 49ers are comfortable with prioritizing Samuel over Aiyuk on their depth chart, but are they making a serious mistake by doing so?

An original and nonconformist opinion on Aiyuk surfaced on Sunday from the brain of NBC Sports' Mike Florio.

Florio suggested that San Francisco should do whatever it can to pay and keep Aiyuk, even if that means trading Samuel.

"With the 49ers now facing a formal trade request from Aiyuk, one potential path out of the maze would include trading Deebo and paying Aiyuk as the team’s WR1," Florio said.

"Frankly, Aiyuk performed like the team’s WR1 last year. Even though he had only 105 targets in 16 regular-season games last year, Deebo had only 89 in 15. As to receptions, Aiyuk had 75 for 1,342 yards. Deebo had 60 for 892. So they could trade Deebo and pay Aiyuk and hope others (like rookie Ricky Pearsall) can fill the void."

Florio's argument is difficult to ignore. While San Francisco's best-case scenario places both Samuel and Aiyuk on the roster, choosing only one represents a more difficult decision for the 49ers than the franchise has indicated.

Should Lynch consider what Florio has floated out into the ether, or is the Aiyuk situation going to take a more predictable route?

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