There are several players with an uncertain future which could impact the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but one weapon the NFL world is keeping an eye on is San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who is seeking a contract extension.
49ers general manager John Lynch has said multiple times this offseason that they want to keep Aiyuk in the fold long-term, saying Monday that he “wouldn’t expect” to trade his best player, but a new one report indicates that this situation is pending. .
According to Chronicle of San Francisco, we cannot rule out Aiyuk being traded in the coming days. As Michael Silver said, “anything is possible.”
The 49ers reportedly want a first-round pick for Aiyuk in 2024, with one NFL executive telling Silver “they want too much.” Another team’s general manager believes the 49ers could eventually take a second-round pick.
Jonathan Jones, CBS Sports’ top NFL insider recently checked in the league for what teams would consider fair compensation in an Aiyuk trade, and two executives brought up the AJ Brown trade, where the Philadelphia Eagles sent picks No. 18 and 101 to the Tennessee Titans in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft for their star. wide.
Aiyuk is coming off a career year, as he caught 75 passes for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns in 2023 as the 49ers appeared in Super Bowl LVIII. His 17.9 yards per reception ranked second in the NFL and he recorded seven 100-yard outings, which was the most for a 49er in a single season since Jerry Rice in 1995.
Aiyuk is under contract for one more season, but he would of course like his lucrative extension as soon as possible. Spotrac’s market value tool has Aiyuk signing a four-year, $99,823,404 contract that carries an AAV of $24.9 million, but several factors affect that. Consider that the Eagles just signed DeVonta Smith for a three-year extension worth $75 million. Philadelphia was smart, getting ahead of the expected explosion in the wide receiver market.
Some of the best pass catchers in the world are ready to extend this offseason, like Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings, Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals, CeeDee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys, Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Detroit Lions and, of course, Aiyuk. All of these wideouts will want top dollar, and potential deals for teams that wait could be made more difficult by teams making deals sooner rather than later.
