With one week to go before training camp starts and so far unable to secure the long-term contract extension he wants, wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk has requested a trade from the San Francisco 49ers.
Of course, this does not mean he will get one. After all, this is the NFL, not the NBA, and plenty of player trade requests go unrequited in this league. Tee Higgins of the Bengals requested a trade earlier this offseason and didn't get one. Deebo Samuel Sr. requested a trade from the 49ers in 2022 and also didn't get one -- though Samuel did ultimately get the contract he wanted, while we still don't know whether Aiyuk will get his extension. And with the Niners all-in to win this season's Super Bowl, they have no reason to want to deal away one of their best players.
San Francisco can move on from Samuel next offseason and sign Aiyuk at that point, which may be its plan. You can understand why Aiyuk might not want to wait around on the possibility, but it's really not up to him. The Niners don't have to trade him, and as of now, they don't want to move the WR. Nevertheless, let's have some fun.
If the Niners were to change their minds and decide to trade Aiyuk, here's a partial list of teams that might make for a good landing spot.
Pittsburgh Steelers
This has been the team most commonly connected with a potential Aiyuk trade all offseason, and it would make some sense.
The Steelers' No. 1 receiver is third-year man George Pickens, who recorded an encouraging 115 catches and 1,941 yards over his first two NFL seasons despite a dismal quarterback situation. But after Pickens, the Steelers' top WRs are probably veteran Van Jefferson and rookie third-rounder Roman Wilson.
Aiyuk would make a sweet running mate for Pickens, who's extension-eligible for the first time next offseason. Unlike some of the other teams on this list, the Steelers have the cap space right now to absorb Aiyuk's $14.124 million salary, which they would technically have to carry for at least 24 hours before they could officially sign him to the extension. (And yeah, it obviously goes without saying that any team trading for Aiyuk would have to sign him to an extension.)
Washington Commanders
Washington also has the cap space to make this move without adjusting anyone else's contract. The Commanders have Terry McLaurin atop their depth chart; he's guaranteed $18.25 million this season but nothing in 2025 or beyond, so their long-term budget has room for a No. 1 wide receiver.
The jury remains out on 2022 first-round pick Jahan Dotson, who hasn't reached 50 catches in either of his first two NFL seasons. Plus, the team is under new management and could jump-start a retooling of the wide receiver group with a move such as this one.
New York Jets
The Jets would have to clear cap space to make this move happen, but they need to extend edge rusher Haason Reddick anyway and likely could create enough room by doing that. Garrett Wilson, a 2022 first-round receiver, looks like a budding star who will require a big extension himself at some point in the next couple of years, but the Jets are all-in for this season around Aaron Rodgers and would surely be willing to navigate that contract quagmire if it helped them win this year.
A pairing of Aiyuk and Wilson -- along with young star running back Breece Hall -- would give Rodgers as formidable a group of skill-position players as any in the league and would ease the team's reliance on free agent signee Mike Williams to stay healthy. New York's 1,696 receiving yards from the WR room ranked 31st in the NFL last season.
Buffalo Bills
No, they also don't have the cap space to take on $14.125 million, but the Bills aren't far off and likely could get there with a couple of small moves. Having traded Stefon Diggs to Houston and lost Gabe Davis to Jacksonville in free agency, the Bills certainly have a need at the position. Rookie Keon Coleman is still an unknown, and at this time Buffalo looks likely to try and build its 2024 offense around second-year tight end Dalton Kincaid and third-year running back James Cook while their wide receiver situation sorts itself out. Adding Aiyuk would obviously leave the Bills with less to sort out.
Dan Orlovsky and Chris "Mad Dog" Russo weigh in on Brandon Aiyuk's significance to the San Francisco 49ers' offense.
Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers lost Justin Herbert's top two receivers this offseason. They released Mike Williams, who signed with the Jets, and traded Keenan Allen to the Bears.
Sure, there are guys on the Chargers' roster who may be able to step in and fill those roles. Joshua Palmer has been behind Williams and Allen on the depth chart for three years. Quentin Johnston was their 2023 first-round pick. And Ladd McConkey was their 2024 second-rounder. But Aiyuk is more established than any of them and could give new coach Jim Harbaugh a major building block to help restart the Chargers' passing game ahead of schedule.