San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch has repeatedly downplayed the possibility of trading wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, despite the All-Pro skipping mandatory minicamp while seeking a new contract. And yet Aiyuk, who is technically signed through 2024, continues to stoke the flames of a potential split, recently telling former college teammate Jayden Daniels “they don’t want me back.”
Lynch has said publicly the 49ers want to sign Aiyuk to a long-term deal, but San Francisco has so far been unwilling to meet the wideout’s contract demands, per ESPN. The 49ers just spent a first-round draft pick at the position, adding Florida’s Ricky Pearsall to a group also featuring Pro Bowler Deebo Samuel, who’s due more than $24 million in each of the next two seasons.
Aiyuk, meanwhile, could be seeking at least that much annually on a new deal, with six different wideouts securing extensions averaging more than $24 million per year this offseason. If the 49ers don’t budge and decide instead to auction Aiyuk via trade, which clubs could emerge as logical destinations?
Here are potential landing spots: