SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 21: Christian McCaffrey #23 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates with Brock Purdy #13 after scoring a touchdown against the New York Giants during the second quarter in the game at Levi's Stadium on September 21, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
On NFL draft day, there’s a chance the 49ers deal Brandon Aiyuk. This is how it might appear.
Brandon Aiyuk trade talks will go on during the summer until a deal is finalised with the San Francisco 49ers.
But after the NFL draft, assuming he’s still with the team, things will calm down. The 49ers would be foolish to move Aiyuk after the draft in order to deny themselves the chance to select a player who can help them in the near future.
Thus, Aiyuk will be extensively involved in trade situations up until the draft. A draft day trade is one possibility that might occur if the 49ers decide to move on from him. The 49ers would accomplish that if they choose to select a wide receiver in the first round, such as Adonai Mitchell.
The 49ers would be wise to get their Aiyuk successor before trading him. That would imply that the 49ers would not receive their first-round pick back, but it would also mean that they would receive a great bundle of second-round picks. Given the state of the market and the likelihood of a first-round pick, moving a wide receiver is likely the only option.
And if you’re the 49ers, they will have effectively filled the void left by Aiyuk with a drafted receiver, so I believe they could withstand trading for a tonne of second-round selections for him at that time. Naturally, this is only a good idea if they already have a trading partner who has a package ready.
It also depends on the 49ers actually selecting their wide receiver, though if they truly wanted Mitchell, I wouldn’t rule out a trade up for a few picks. Considering his skill set is comparable to Aiyuk’s, getting him would make sense.
