As of Tuesday afternoon, it appeared that the Pittsburgh Steelers had two major competitors in their pursuit of San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. However, things changed Tuesday night.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the New England Patriots are no longer in the running for Aiyuk's services after dropping out. Schefter adds that the Patriots "are excited about their young receivers and want to focus on them."
"Sources: After inquiring about Brandon Aiyuk’s availability, the Patriots have decided not to explore any further trade possibilities with the 49ers regarding their standout wide receiver," Schefter wrote. "Patriots are excited about their young receivers and want to focus on them."
Translation: Aiyuk had no desire to go to New England and squashed a trade there by refusing to sign an extension.
With the Patriots out of the hunt, that leaves two known teams vying for Aiyuk, with the Steelers being one and the Cleveland Browns being the other. There might be more, but those are the only other teams that have been specifically mentioned, according to reports from Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
"My understanding is the Pittsburgh Steelers have had discussions with the 49ers about potential trading Brandon Aiyuk," Rapoport said Tuesday afternoon after all hope for a Steelers-Aiyuk trade seemed lost. "They are for sure in it right now. They're one of several teams that the 49ers are speaking with. The Cleveland Browns are one of those teams. The New England Patriots are one of those teams."
Steelers and 49ers re-engaged in conversations mid-day today regarding Brandon Aiyuk, per league sources. As of Monday night, the 49ers-Steelers talks stalled. But there have been further conversations today in an ever-fluid situation that still involves other teams as well.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 6, 2024
Making Pittsburgh's prospects of landing Aiyuk look even better is this report from NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco, who notes that the Steelers are the wide receiver's "preferred destination."
The Steelers were not willing to meet 49ers trade demand yesterday. Pittsburgh has been a preferred destination for Aiyuk. https://t.co/SIXaGA9aGs
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) August 6, 2024
What makes pulling off a trade a bit more difficult is the fact that Aiyuk wants an extension, also, thus he can nix any deal simply by saying he won't sign what the acquiring team is offering.
Regardless, things are getting real interesting for the Steelers. We'll see if they can close the deal and end this roller coaster and, hopefully for everyone's sake, that happens sooner rather than later.
