Perhaps now isn’t the time to pull a trade joke involving Kyle Shanahan and Brandon Aiyuk.Even though San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan playfully acknowledged that there is still no fresh information on the star wideout’s trade predicament, the story of the Brandon Aiyuk move is far from finished. The Pittsburgh Steelers are still in the running for Aiyuk as of Wednesday; the New England Patriots withdrew their offer few weeks prior. But there isn’t much time left for the Steelers to reach an agreement before the NFL season begins. The 49ers coach attempted to play it lighthearted, perhaps anticipating concerns about his receiver, but he received negative feedback from fans on social media.Whoa, a lot has changed. No, I’m not serious. No, there aren’t any updates. During his visit on KNBR, Shanahan stated, “I’m sorry to keep being boring with that, but I wish I was saying something different, but nothing’s changed yet,” as Adam Schefter reported.Brandon Aiyuk’s influence on any trade proposal makes it hard to remove the wide receiver from the 49ers. Aiyuk, who has complete control over the situation, must sign a contract extension with his new team before any deal can take place. For example, the Patriots eventually retracted their offer since he has expressed his desire to not play for the team.
However, if all trade negotiations fail, the organization may very well decide to maintain their standout receiver. If the Steelers trade falls through and the wide receiver chooses to stay with his team, the 49ers are reportedly in talks with Aiyuk about a new contract extension.
Reactions from Shanahan
However, the joke by Kyle Shanahan was not well received by fans on social media, including those of the 49ers and Steelers.
The account Steelers Network wrote on X, previously Twitter, saying, “I think I speak for all Steelers and 49ers fans when I say just get this damn thing done regardless of the outcome.”Another admirer said, “Jesus pay him or trade him good Lord,” nearly raising his hands in a sigh.Another commenter, meanwhile, claimed that everything here was smoke and mirrors. He said, “All that drama for him to stay in SF.”Someone else said further down the line that the 49ers were only using the media circus around Aiyuk to their advantage when the deal finally went through.
“I’m beginning to smell BS. There’s no way they can’t find a trade partner, particularly because I’m sure other teams would have been happy to provide him the desired deal. The commenter speculated that the 49ers would wind up extending him and that the greatest offseason story was never really a story at all.The 49ers’ standout wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk may be the true winner, regardless of what happens to him. He may play for a club that is vying for the Super Bowl and get paid more in a new deal if he sticks with his current squad. If he is exchanged, the person who acquires him will pay him a significant sum.
