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The Washington Commanders could make a big move to reunite newly-minted franchise quarterback Jayden Daniels with one of his favorite college targets
Athlon Sports’ Jonathan Alfano laid out a scenario in which it makes sense for the Commanders to go after San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and reunite him with Daniels, who was throwing passes to Aiyuk at Arizona State in 2019.
Daniels transferred to LSU for his final two college seasons, winning the Heisman Trophy in 2023. The Commanders selected him No. 2 overall in the 2024 NFL draft.
Aiyuk is in the final year of his rookie contract with the 49ers, who selected him with the No. 25 overall pick in 2020. Aiyuk has been open about his desire for a long-term deal since the end of the 2023 season.
The Athletic projects a deal for Aiyuk would likely be a 5-year extension worth around $128.5 million.
The 49ers have already picked up the fifth-year option for Aiyuk, which will pay him approximately $14 million in 2024.
“If Washington really wants to go big, then San Francisco 49ers star Brandon Aiyuk could be a very enticing trade target,” Alfano wrote. “After all, he and Daniels are already extremely close from their time together at Arizona State in 2019. That season, Aiyuk caught 65 passes for 1,192 yards and eight touchdowns with Daniels throwing him the ball.”
Aiyuk Made First NFL All-Pro Team in 2023
Aiyuk had his best college season catching passes from Daniels in 2019 — good enough to propel him into the first round of the NFL draft in 2020.
Over the last two seasons, Aiyuk has established himself as one of the NFL’s best wide receivers with back-to-back seasons over 1,000 receiving yards, including his first NFL All-Pro season in 2023 with 75 receptions for 1,342 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns.
Daniels took time to praise Aiyuk as a mentor after being selected by the Commanders on April 25.
“I talk to (Aiyuk), three-four times a day almost every day, so I lean on him a lot,” Daniels said in a Q&A released by the Commanders. “And you know, he’s done it at a high level for four-plus years going on his fifth year. So, I’m excited just to learn from him and try to get some game but also just coming in and getting to learn from my teammates now. They started off and I’m happy I get to follow them.”
Daniels isn’t the only connection Aiyuk has on the Commanders — first-year general manager Adam Peters was the assistant general manager in San Francisco when Aiyuk was drafted.
49ers Drafted Wide Receiver in First Round
If the San Francisco 49ers were trying to send a message to Aiyuk in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, they did it in a not-very-subtle way when they selected Florida wide receiver Ricky Pearsall with the No. 30 overall pick.
In an interesting twist, Pearsall was also part of Arizona State’s wide receiving corps in 2019 alongside Aiyuk and catching passes from Daniels, who he played with for three seasons before both transferred to SEC schools and played their way into being first-round picks.
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