The San Francisco 49ers are still trying to convince Brandon Aiyuk, but, the latest statement from general manager John Lynch isn’t optimistic at all with the Pittsburgh Steelers looming as a possible trade destination.
“I wish I knew. As I said, we started early and it’s consumed a lot of our time. My time. I don’t like that it’s taken this long, but it has, and you deal with the challenges that you’re faced with.”
Right now, Aiyuk and Dak Prescott are the two biggest stories in the NFL as they’re trying to land historic contract extensions. In the case of the wide receiver, there seems to be a huge gap between what the 49ers offer and the money he is looking for.
Which teams might trade for Brandon Aiyuk?
During the last few weeks, Brandon Aiyuk has turned down offers from the New England Patriots and the Cleveland Browns. However, the wide receiver publicly admitted on social there’s a trade offer he is considering: the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The big problem is that the 49ers want a wide receiver as compensation in the trade package and the Steelers won’t give up one. That’s taken a toll on John Lynch’s patience as he explained in an interview with KNBR.
“I’m not going to characterize any chances or anything. It’s been a long, arduous, hard process. A hard journey. We started this early and for whatever reason haven’t been able to get it across the finish line. That’s been frustrating, but the communication still has been really good both with Brandon and his agent, and we’re trying to figure out solutions.”
Will Brandon Aiyuk sign a contract extension with the 49ers?
If the San Francisco 49ers want to keep Brandon Aiyuk, they’ll have to pay him at least $30 million per year after Justin Jefferson reset the market. Although they can franchise tag the wide receiver in 2025, the locker room could suffer Aiyuk’s protests.
It’s important to remember that the 49ers already gave massive contracts to Christian McCaffrey and Nick Bosa. Furthermore, Brock Purdy is set to become one of the highest paid players in NFL history and Trent Williams also wants big money. A lot of problems for John Lynch.
“You know I’m always hopeful. I’m an optimistic person in nature, and I’m always hopeful that we’ll get there and get there soon. I can tell you, we feel the urgency to have him, the season’s approaching, and we have ample time.”