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If a new contract extension or trade is on the way for Brandon Aiyuk, there isn't much time left to get it done. Between getting the fifth-year receiver caught up to speed on a new team, system and playbook, the Steelers may only have until Labor Day (Monday, September 2) to make something happen. For a contract extension, both the player and team have no reason to bring their best, bottom-line deal until there is a deadline date agreement, according to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio.
“Whatever the 49ers have decided the deadline is to get him into the fold for Week 1, right at that moment they're gonna make their best offer,” Florio said on The Pat McAfee Show. “And they assume he's going to take it. But there's no reason to [make their best offer] until then.”
While this 49ers-Aiyuk drama has been unfolding for months now, a resolution doesn't appear to be any closer. On Tuesday, there was a report that a long-term contract extension was still in progress. The Steelers offer via trade put them “in the neighborhood” according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. Also notable is that the Patriots offered the most money, at more than $30 million annually, but Aiyuk does not want to play in New England.
Why it makes the most sense for Brandon Aiyuk to accept the 49ers' contract offer and avoid a Steelers trade
In early August, Colin Cowherd argued that Aiyuk would never be in a better situation than he is in while playing for San Francisco.
“Brandon Aiyuk will never play in his career if he leaves San Francisco with a better offensive coach.”
He compared it to Tyreek Hill's situation in Miami, where a new team came along, and the Chiefs kept on winning without him. That may be a fair comparison and a similar reason why Aiyuk turned down the Patriots' offer as he wouldn't want to play for a team in flux.
If you ask what Aiyuk's teammates think, they don't sound worried. When asked if the 49ers could win a Super Bowl without Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel spoke confidently on the Up & Adams Show.
“Can we win a Super Bowl without BA? I think BA is going to be a part of this team, so we don’t have to worry about that.”
The 49ers have everything they need and were on the doorstep of a Super Bowl last year. Allowing Aiyuk to be traded away at the 11th hour of the preseason seems like a mistake. San Francisco hopes to have BA on the field and ready to play for their Week 1 Monday Night Football matchup hosting the New York Jets on September 9 at 8:15 p.m. EST.
