The New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers are two teams on different levels of competitiveness. Kyle Shanahan and Co. are looking to make the most of their Super Bowl window with Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey still in their primes. Meanwhile, Jerod Mayo has a lot of work to do such that Drake Maye pans out as their franchise quarterback in his rookie campaign. But, one thing binds them together and that is the interest to have Brandon Aiyuk on their squad.
While it was an ambitious move for the Patriots to make an offer for Brandon Aiyuk, the 49ers front office reportedly shut down any chances of a trade. Kyle Shanahan along with the other members of the 49ers apparently told Jerod Mayo's camp that the elite wide receiver was not up for getting traded at the time, per Josina Anderson of TheCREW. So, it looks like Drake Maye is not getting any new weapons inside the Patriots system.
Nonetheless, it looks like he still has serviceable pass catchers who are more than willing to grow alongside him. Maye's weapons are led by Kendrick Bourne and DeMario Douglas. He will also get to throw to guys like JuJu Smith-Schuster, KJ Osborn, Javon Baker, and Tyquan Thornton among others. His tight end lineup also includes Hunter Henry, Austin Hooper, and Jaheim Bell.
Coach Mayo will not be alone in helping the young Patriots quarterback develop into a star in the coming regular season campaign. He will also get the help of Jacoby Brissett which will surely help their rookie signal caller notch better skills on the field. The Patriots may not have landed Aiyuk but they still have a fairly solid rebuilding squad that is capable of winning some games throughout the 2024-25 season.
Brandon Aiyuk in the 49ers' system
There is a good reason why the Shanahan-led 49ers did not want to give Aiyuk to the Patriots. It could be largely because he is coming off a career year that helped the Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey-ran offense make their way into the Super Bowl. However, Aiyuk already requested a trade after not getting the contract that he desired.
Throughout 11 games for the 49ers, Aiyuk surpassed a lot of his career highs. He caught the ball 70.5% of the time which is an insane improvement from his previous career-high record which just clocked in at 60.7%. This led Aiyuk to notch 17.9 yards per catch and 83.9 yards a night. Both of these numbers helped Aiyuk contribute a total of 1,342 receiving yards which is also a career-high.
What made these numbers more outstanding was the fact that he also notched the yards very efficiently. To put it into perspective, he was able to get 1,015 yards on 114 targets back in 2023-24. In his most recent campaign with the 49ers, he got the 1,342 receiving yards in just 105 targets and 75 receptions.
Aiyuk still has a lot to give to any team that may want him. Hopefully, his numbers get bigger such that he gets to prove to the 49ers front office that he was worth the money.
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