What the Steelers Could be Offering the 49ers for Brandon Aiyuk

It seems highly unlikely a first-round pick is involved. Maybe the 49ers could have gotten one from Pittsburgh before the draft in April, but not now in August.

Nov 19, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (11) makes a catch for a 76-yard touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the third quarter at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

We don't know yet what the Steelers have offered the 49ers for Brandon Aiyuk. All we know is that Aiyuk eventually will end up in Pittsburgh according to The NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.

That's because Pittsburgh is the only team interested in trading for Brandon Aiyuk whom Aiyuk also is interested in playing for. And it doesn't seem like the 49ers want him to return to the team as a malcontent on his fifth-year option.

So let's speculate about what the Steelers could be offering the 49ers.

It seems highly unlikely a first-round pick is involved. Maybe the 49ers could have gotten one from Pittsburgh before the draft in April, but not now in August.

It also seems unlikely that the Steelers would send the 49ers a player because they don't have a wide receiver the 49ers would want. And the 49ers seem intent on getting a receiver to replace Aiyuk if they trade him. They had a deal in place with Cleveland for Amari Cooper and a deal in place with New England for Kendrick Bourne, but Aiyuk nixed those trades by refusing to sign contract extensions with those teams.

So I'm guessing the Steelers are offering the 49ers a package that's similar to the one the 49ers sent to Carolina in exchange for Christian McCaffrey two years ago. Remember, the 49ers traded a second-round pick, a third-round pick, a fourth-round pick and a future fifth-round pick for McCaffrey. That was the deal.

Aiyuk isn't as good as McCaffrey, and his impending contract extension lowers his trade value. So my best guess is that the Steelers have offered a second- and a third-round pick for Aiyuk. Maybe the 49ers will get them to throw in a fourth- or a fifth-rounder as well by swapping picks with them. But the 49ers most likely won't get a first-rounder or a player.

Which means they'll have to take one of the picks they get from Pittsburgh and trade it to another team for a wide receiver. That process could take a few days.

Let's see what happens.