Let the ever-changing NFL rumor mill tell it, the Washington Commanders have backed out of the trade sweepstakes for San Francisco 49ers wideout Brando Aiyuk.
At least for now, that ruins any idea that the Commanders will work to reunite No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels with his former Arizona State University teammate and good friend.
According to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area, the Commanders “removed themselves” from trade talks with the 49ers, leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, and New England Patriots potentially in the running.
Which for the Commanders, makes plenty of sense.
Part of it comes down to simple cap space. ESPN’s Mike Reiss is the latest to report on the situation and peeled back details on that front: “One significant factor is Aiyuk agreeing to a contract with another team. Other teams are willing to pay Aiyuk more than double the value of his $14.124 million fifth-year option, but he has balked so far at multiple contract offers, according to sources.”
While some will point to the fact the Commanders have roughly $36 million in free cap space and can afford that type of investment while the quarterback is on a rookie contract, wideout Terry McLaurin is already a cap hit of roughly $24 million in 2024. That will only escalate on another extension and allocating so much cap space to one position could prove unwise.
There’s also the matter of draft assets. Like Reiss notes, the 49ers have to agree to the compensation, too, and are more than willing to keep Aiyuk next year. Coughing up future draft picks that could provide weapons (and more importantly) offensive linemen on rookie contracts would be a risky gamble. Especially, now, in August—Aiyuk is a great player, but how long will it take to learn a new program, offense and timing with a rookie passer?
For the Commanders, doing due diligence on this front only makes sense, yet there’s a reason other teams are seemingly backing out, too. Giving Daniels McLaurin, former first-rounder Jahan Dotson and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury isn’t a bad way to progress while retaining flexibility in the form of cap space and draft assets.
