3-team trade proposal for Brandon Aiyuk would make 49ers fans chuckle

Bleacher Report suggested a provocative Brandon Aiyuk trade, but again, it fails to address why the 49ers would logically do it now.

It’s a natural thing to start suggesting all kinds of trade possibilities when a player and his team are having trouble coming to an agreement on a new contract.

For almost all of the offseason, that’s been the speculation point between the San Francisco 49ers and their disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who at least met with the team last week to air things out amid his own broken-down contract extension talks.

Aside from that, though, the two parties don’t appear to be any closer to negotiating a new contract. With training camp just a few weeks away, the thought about a possible Aiyuk trade won’t cease either.

Even though all signs continue to point to the Niners having zero interest in doing so.

However, that won’t stop some from the continued speculation on Aiyuk’s immediate future in San Francisco, which includes a recent proposed trade from Bleacher Report that’ll likely make 49ers fans laugh.

Look, it’s the offseason. Aside from the Aiyuk drama, there isn’t much to talk about regarding the Niners.

So, we shouldn’t fault B/R’s Kristopher Knox for breaking down three jaw-dropping trades that could, at least in theory, happen between now and Week 1. Fans will read stuff that like (we did), and then we all can discuss whether or not any of it makes sense.

On the surface, Knox’s aggressive trade proposal has some weight. And the fact it involves a three-team transaction involving San Francisco, Aiyuk, the New England Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons is, well… provocative:

In the proposal, the 49ers ship off Aiyuk to the Pats, who are in desperate need of receiving help. And the Niners get what’ll likely be a high-end first-round pick in 2025 in return.

Not terrible. From the outside, looking in, it still makes sense. But to make the deal even more interesting, New England gives the Falcons some much-needed pass-rushing help by sending edge Matthew Judon down to Atlanta, while San Francisco gets both the Falcons’ third-rounder in 2025 and cornerback Mike Hughes, a former first-round pick who has bounced around the league a bit since joining the Minnesota Vikings back in 2018.

Here’s what Knox had to say about the transaction:

“This trade would strengthen Atlanta’s chances of making a run in the NFC South and net the 49ers a solid return for Aiyuk. The Patriots, meanwhile, would get a No. 1-caliber receiver to aid the development of rookie quarterback Drake Maye. With $43.3 million in cap space available, New England could afford to give Aiyuk the long-term extension he is seeking.”

Again, on the surface, there seems to be some merit to such a deal. The 49ers would get a pretty hefty haul for Aiyuk, including a coveted early first-round draft choice next year, while adding a third-rounder and an experienced cornerback to bolster the secondary.

Meanwhile, both the Patriots and Falcons address needs, too.

However, what Knox didn’t address is the fact nothing about that deal significantly helps the Niners’ own Super Bowl aspirations right now. Hughes doesn’t move the needle within San Francisco’s defensive backfield, particularly with Charvarius Ward, Deommodore Lenoir and Isaac Yiadom set to patrol the secondary.

And those two draft picks won’t matter much at all until 2025. That’s not particularly helpful for a 49ers team going all in for 2024.

Remember, Aiyuk is still under contract this season, and the Niners could apply the franchise tag twice over the following two years, too.

As such, this is a trade San Francisco won’t care to execute. If it wanted to do so, it would have happened long, long ago.

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