After an offseason chock-full of rumors and subtle signs, Brandon Aiyuk has finally, officially requested a trade from the San Francisco 49ers.
NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported the news on Tuesday, saying Aiyuk's contract extension talks with the team have been unsuccessful; the former first-round pick is entering the final year of his rookie deal. But the Niners have not engaged in negotiations since May. As such, Aiyuk is "respectfully" asking out.
This felt like a somewhat inevitable endgame for the situation. Aiyuk recorded a career-high 1,342 yards in 2023 to go along with 75 catches and seven touchdowns. He was named second-team All-Pro for his work and, clearly, would like to receive a raise that reflects his recent accolades. However, San Francisco already gave out big deals to its other skill position stars in Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffrey, with the biggest one yet coming next offseason in the form of a new deal for Brock Purdy.
In light of all that, the news doesn't come as a shock. The 49ers drafted his presumed replacement, Florida Gators product Ricky Pearsall, in the first round of April's NFL draft. Aiyuk has been sending out constant hints all offseason that negotiations aren't going the way he would like, going so far as to tag Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin in a tweet. He wants a big deal that resets the WR market, the 49ers are not interested in giving such a deal to him, and here we are.
The question now becomes if the 49ers actually trade him. His value is not super high at the moment as teams have their rosters pretty close to set heading into training camp and won't offer up much in terms of draft capital given how publicly the saga has played out. But Aiyuk is still a great receiving talent and such players have never been more important in today's pass-happy NFL. Therefore San Fran might be able to get a decent return for Aiyuk, even with the knowledge that whoever trades for the wideout must then also give him a deal in the range of the $120 accord Amon-Ra St. Brown signed with the Detroit Lions a few months ago.
The cat is out of the bag. Now it's time to find out if Aiyuk will be suiting up in a different uniform for 2024.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as All-Pro Receiver Brandon Aiyuk Officially Requests Trade From 49ers, per Report .
