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Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk requested a trade from the San Francisco 49ers in mid-July and the team was unwilling to trade him. At first.
Nearly a month later, the tides have turned and multiple reports are saying the Niners are now open to dealing the 26-year-old receiver.
“At this point, Aiyuk and the 49ers have some options. And it appears more likely than ever that the 49ers are willing to make a trade. It might be up to Aiyuk to determine the next move,” Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports (Bay Area) wrote on August 4.
Maiocco believes the New England Patriots are a “logical trade partner for the 49ers,” also naming the Cleveland Browns as another team that could make the most sense as a landing spot for Aiyuk. “The Patriots could offer former 49ers wide receiver Kendrick Bourne as part of a trade that includes an enticing package of 2025 draft picks,” Maiocco added.
Would the New England Patriots Be Interested in Trading for 49ers All-Pro WR Brandon Aiyuk?
There’s much to love about Aiyuk’s game. A second-team All-Pro selection in 2023, Aiyuk caught 75 passes for a career-high 1,342 yards, averaging a whopping 17.9 yards per catch to go with seven touchdown grabs.
It was Aiyuk’s second consecutive season with over 1,000 yards receiving, and he’s just entering his prime. Adding a player with his athleticism and sure hands (he has a career catch percentage of 67.4%) would be a gift for rookie quarterback Drake Maye and the entire Patriots offense.
Additionally, New England does have some draft capital to work with if the team should want to make an addition via trade. The Pats currently have eight draft picks in the 2025 NFL draft: a first-rounder, a second-rounder, a third-rounder, a fourth-rounder, a fifth-round selection and three seventh-round selections.
It remains to be seen what Aiyuk’s trade value is, but it might be worth a phone call from Patriots executive Eliot Wolf to find out.
Kendrick Bourne Might Be Interested in This Trade Idea, Too
Maiocco including Bourne in his trade suggestion is interesting. Bourne began his career with the 49ers in 2017 as an undrafted free agent, and spent the first four seasons of his career in San Francisco, where he played in 58 games.
Bourne played in eight games last season before suffering a season-ending ACL tear in his right leg Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins. It’s likely he won’t be ready to go until at least Week 4 or 5 of the upcoming season. There’s something poetic about returning to the place his career began, and there’s no doubt Bourne would like to play for a perennial contender like the 49ers. But his recovery could be a roadblock in any impending trade.
The Patriots WR amassed just over 400 yards receiving in each of the last two seasons , which isn’t great, but he was hurt in 2023 and 2022 was a down year. He caught 55 passes for 800 yards and five TDs in 2021, and the Niners would certainly be interested if he were back in top form.
Still, this will all come down to Aiyuk and whether he can work out a new deal. According to Maiocco: “Aiyuk has expressed an interest in remaining with the 49ers, so that remains a possibility, too. All he has to do is accept the San Francisco’s latest offer — believed to be at least a couple million shy of the $30-million-a-year threshold.”
We’ll see what happens in San Francisco, but this is a situation the Patriots — and several other teams — should be monitoring closely.
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