On Tuesday night’s episode of The Insiders on NFL Network, Tom Pelissero revealed that wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s meeting with the San Francisco 49ers brass on Monday went smoothly and significant progress was made. The two sides are not where they want to be yet but they’re heading in the right direction.
“Aiyuk and the 49ers brass met on Monday at Aiyuk’s request. This was a good meeting from what I was told. Both sides said things that needed to be said and they’re gonna keep working,” Pelissero said. “It’s important to note here, there’s never been a trade request from Brandon Aiyuk. That hasn’t changed. The 49ers’ stance hasn’t changed either. Despite getting trade calls on Aiyuk going back to draft week, they’re moving forward, and they want Aiyuk to be a part of the team in 2024.”
Pelissero expects things to be quiet over the next few weeks, but the 49ers and Aiyuk could strike a deal before the start of training camp in late July.
“What I would anticipate here is all parties involved will go ahead and enjoy the 4th of July holiday, regroup sometime after that. They’ve still got several weeks here to see if they can hammer out a deal,” Pelissero said.
What are the biggest questions facing each NFC West team? We broke that down — including the latest on Brandon Aiyuk — with help from @BaldyNFL on The Insiders on @nflnetwork.
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🎧 https://t.co/o1K5Rl5nkB pic.twitter.com/RYjvL7miVc— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 26, 2024
As of now, all signs point to Aiyuk not being traded. Throughout the offseason, the 49ers have been adamant about not trading either of their star wide receivers, Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel.
“I’m doing everything in my power to keep our roster together,” 49ers general manager JohnLynch said on the Pat McAfee Show in May. “That’s my goal, and I don’t question that. When you talk about guys like Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo, those are guys that we drafted, and we take a lot of pride in what they’ve become and who they’ve become. We couldn’t be more proud of those guys. And so, during the course of drafts and offseasons, do conversations happen? Absolutely, they do. We’re past that now. We’re thrilled to add to that group.”
The Steelers expressed interest in trading for Aiyuk, Steelers Now has confirmed, but their initial efforts were rebuffed, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
“My understanding is that the Steelers placed a phone call a few weeks ago. And were told by the 49ers we’re not trading the guy,” Florio said in an appearance on 93.7 the Fan in May.
Adam Schefter said on ESPN Live that conversations took place with the Commanders and 49ers, but nothing materialized.
“There were some conversations at one point between the 49ers and Commanders,” Schefter said. “Commanders were interested, but they decided not to do that deal.”
The Commanders seemed like front-runners for Aiyuk because of his connection with quarterback Jayden Daniels. The two were college teammates at Arizona State. Ryan Clark disclosed that Aiyuk walked into the room with Daniels to tell him that he was meeting with the 49ers. Clark interviewed Aiyuk on The Pivot Podcast, which will be released later this week.
Aiyuk is seeking a deal that matches or exceeds the $30 million per year that the Detroit Lions gave Amon-Ra St. Brown earlier this offseason, while the 49ers have reportedly offered a deal that is worth $26 million annually, according to Mike Silver, who covers the 49ers for Bally Sports.
Despite the sides only apparently being $4 million apart, Aiyuk took to social media to express his displeasure at the lack of movement last week, posting a video to TikTok where he told Daniels that the 49ers “don’t want me.”
It appears that the 49ers have cooled Aiyuk’s discomfort. Aiyuk told Clark that he took the 49ers’ previous offers “personal.”