The Brandon Aiyuk sweepstakes take a disappointing turn for the Patriots
The Patriots no longer look like one of the favorites to land San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Late Monday night, reports out of San Francisco seemed to suggest the New England Patriots were among the favorites to land disgruntled 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk in a trade. Just under 24 hours later, the tone of the reporting has shifted completely.
The report on Monday night indicated that the 49ers had deals in place with the Patriots and Cleveland Browns for Aiyuk, pending Aiyuk agreeing to a contract extension with either team. Aiyuk, 26, has been looking for a trade as he enters the final year of his rookie contract.
Apparently, that new contract won’t be coming from the Patriots. On Tuesday night’ ESPN’s Adam Schefter shared the Patriots are no longer in the running to trade for Aiyuk.
“After inquiring about Brandon Aiyuk’s availability, the Patriots have decided not to explore any further trade possibilities with the 49ers regarding their standout wide receiver,” Schefter tweeted. “Patriots are excited about their young receivers and want to focus on them.”
That was followed by a report from NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco, who also had the initial report Monday night. “The Patriots had an agreement in place with the 49ers and a large offer to Aiyuk on the table, but he did not show interest in going there,” Maiocco posted on Twitter/X.
This comes after the reporting on Monday indicated the Patriots were ready to meet Aiyuk’s contract demands. NFL insider Ari Meirov shared the Patriots were ready to make Aiyuk among the highest-paid receivers in the league, offering “north of $30 million per season.”
Instead the Patriots’ long search for a coverage-dictating wide receiver now likely continues into next season. Top wide receivers who will either be pending free agents or looking for new contracts next spring include D.K. Metcalf, CeeDee Lamb, Tee Higgins, and Terry McLaurin.
