The Patriots, Browns and Steelers have been in contact with the Niners and are interested in trading for the receiver, sources told ESPN.
After a back-and-forth offseason, the San Francisco 49ers They are now willing to listen to exchange offers for Brandon Aiyuk and have given the star wide receiver permission to negotiate contracts with other clubs.
It represents a significant change of stance for the 49erswho did not show the same willingness to listen to offers at the start of training camp.
The Niners have not ruled out retaining Brandon Aiyuk for the final year of his current contract. AP Photo/Alex Brandon
The head coach of the 49ers, Kyle Shanahanconfirmed this Tuesday that Aiyuk He is allowed to negotiate with other teams, but said there is still a scenario where a deal is reached to retain Aiyuk in San Francisco.
“It’s been at this point for some time, so it’s nothing really new to me,” he said. Shanahan“You’re always disappointed when you can’t keep all your players or if it’s not going exactly well. I don’t like losing anyone, so I hope it works out here. But now, we haven’t sorted that out yet. I hope it does.”
Los New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns y Pittsburgh Steelers have been in contact with the Niners and are interested in acquiring in exchange for Aiyuksources told ESPN.
The talks of the Steelers with the 49ers had been on hold until Monday night, but the teams returned to talks Tuesday as part of an ever-fluid situation that still involves other teams, too, sources told Adam Schefter of ESPN.
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Los Patriots have been trying to acquire Aiyuk for months, and it has been a slow process on their part, according to sources. New England is willing to convert Aiyuk one of the five highest-paid wide receivers in the NFL in terms of average annual salary, according to one source.
The first-year head coach of the Patriots, Jerod Mayodid not confirm that the Patriots had received permission to negotiate with Aiyukbut they did admit that they spoke with the current wide receiver New England, Kendrick Bournebecause his name has floated in some reports as someone who could be included in a potential reward package.
“It was a good conversation. Again, I feel like the story is way ahead of everything else,” he said. Mayo on Tuesday, prior to the practice of the Patriots“I just wanted to make sure I cleared the air. I do believe in being transparent with the players and really putting them at ease.”
When asked about reports linking the Browns con Aiyuk and if it is a player who could help Clevelandel head coach Kevin Stefanski He noted, “I don’t really get into reports or speculation… I’m really just focused on today and practice.”
Stefanski He also stated that he would leave any conversations he had with the wide receiver Amari Cooper privately, after his name was offered as part of a hypothetical exchange for Aiyuk.
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The situation could lead to different conclusions, including that Aiyuk stay with the 49ers and play the optional fifth year of his rookie contract for $14.124 million, according to sources. Other teams are willing to pay Aiyuk more than double that, but he has turned down multiple offers, sources said.
Los 49ers They must also be comfortable with any redemption rewards, and sources told ESPN that the reigning champions of the NFC They are willing to retain Aiyuk.
Throughout the saga with Aiyukwhich has generated a strong response from the Aiyuk on social media, culminating in a transfer request at the start of camp, the Niners have been steadfast in their stance about not harming their chances of winning a Super Bowl this year.
The idea of exchanging Aiyukwho was All-Pro second-team and the team’s best receiver in 2023, it would certainly pay off, unless San Francisco get one or two impact players in return. A source told ESPN on Tuesday that interested teams have been more than willing to talk about player inclusion and draft picks, which has helped the Niners to become more open to the idea in the last couple of weeks.
Aiyuk was in the facilities of the 49ers on Tuesday but did not participate in practice, continuing his sideline from activity. Throughout the team’s first 11 sessions of training camp, Aiyuk He has often been spotted watching practice from the sidelines, but that has not happened in the last couple of sessions. However, he has been present at meetings, participating on a regular basis.
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“Brandon “on a great player, so it’s really hard to improve when you lose a great player,” he noted. Shanahan“You have to look at it all. You have to understand the situation we’re in, what it looks like and sometimes it takes time, so hopefully everything works out for the best for him and the best for us in the long run.”
Los 49ers They listened to offers for Aiyuk before and after the NFL draft in April, but turned down those advances because they weren’t getting enough in return. Since then, the wide receiver market in the league has exploded with multiple top-line players — including Justin Jefferson, A.J. Brown, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jaylen Waddle and others–signing lucrative long-term extensions.
Once the draft was over, the Niners They put an end to the exchange discussions Aiyuk partly because of their aspirations to Super Bowl in the next campaign. The idea of transferring Aiyuk for 2025 draft picks wouldn’t help toward that goal. The defensive end of the Niners, Nick Bosasaid Tuesday that transferring to Aiyuk would make it even more difficult.
“I think it would be huge [perderlo]”, he admitted Bosa. “I trust in John [Lynch] y Kylebut he is a very difficult player to replace.”
NBC Sports Bay Area reported Monday night that the 49ers They had “negotiated the swap structure” that they could send to Aiyuk to the Patriots or to the Browns.
Aiyuk26 years old, reported to the training camp of the 49ersbut has not trained in search of his new contract.
The long-standing persecution of the Patriots by Aiyuk dates back to February, when the executive vice president of personnel, Eliot Wolfshared his hope of “arming the offense.” The Patriots They selected Drake Maye with the third overall pick in the draft, and one of his goals has been to surround the former quarterback North Carolina with more talent to help their development.
New England tried in March to sign wide receiver agent Calvin Ridley, who finally landed with the Tennessee Titans under a four-season, $92 million contract.
Information from Daniel Oyefusi was used in the writing of this article.
2024-08-07 01:48:00
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