The San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly aren’t close on a Brandon Aiyuk blockbuster trade after all.
On Wednesday, reports surfaced that the Steelers and 49ers were in heavy discussions on a Brandon Aiyuk trade. This came after it was reported that the New England Patriots bowed out of the Aiyuk sweepstakes due to the 49ers’ hefty asking price and Aiyuk’s unwillingness to play for them.
According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the 49ers and Steelers are not at the stage where they’re “hammering out final details” on an Aiyuk trade. Dulac added that the Steelers would not be giving up a wide receiver in a potential deal.
On top of that, Jim Wexell of Steel City Insider reports that the 49ers are asking the Steelers for two first-round picks in a Brandon Aiyuk trade:
Aiyuk requested a trade from the 49ers last month after months of contract extension talks that went nowhere. The 26-year-old is entering the fifth and final year of his rookie deal.
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Aiyuk is coming off a career year in which he caught 75 passes for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns, helping the 49ers to a Super Bowl 58 appearance. For his career, Aiyuk has 269 receptions for 3,931 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Two First-Round Picks Is Too Much For Aiyuk
As good a player as Aiyuk is, a pair of first-round daft picks is way too high of an asking price. Just consider that the Miami Dolphins only had to give up one first-round pick as part of the package for Tyreek Hill, or that the Las Vegas Raiders sent first and second-round picks to the Green Bay Packers for Davante Adams.
The Steelers are also a hopeful playoff team, not an annual Super Bowl like the Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles or Buffalo Bills. So it doesn’t make sense for a middle-of-the-pack team like Pittsburgh to give up two firsts for Aiyuk when there’s a real possibility that those could end up being top-10 selections.
