Patriots Not Willing To Make Huge Concession in Potential Brandon Aiyuk Trade

The New England Patriots have been one of the teams consistently linked to San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who requested a trade earlier this week.

The Patriots reportedly contacted the 49ers to inquire about Aiyuk, but San Francisco said the young wide receiver wasn’t being traded, per Josina Anderson. On Saturday, we discovered that this wasn’t the first time the Patriots reached out to the 49ers about the former first-round pick.

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk reported that New England was one of five teams ready to pay Aiyuk what he was looking for before the 2024 NFL Draft. Florio added that the 49ers rejected a second-round pick from the Pats.

That said, if the 49ers were willing to turn down a second-round pick from New England, would the Patriots be willing to move a first-round pick for Aiyuk? 

The latest news out of New England suggests that might be one of the biggest hurdles standing in the Pats’ way.

In his weekly column, ESPN’s Mike Reiss wrote about two “significant hurdles” that will likely keep Aiyuk from joining New England.

"There are two significant hurdles for New England, however: The 49ers reportedly don’t intend to trade Aiyuk at this time, and it’s hard to imagine the Patriots being willing to part with their 2025 first-round pick to acquire him considering it could be among the top selections in the draft as they transition to a new regime."

The Niners have stood firm on not trading Aiyuk, so that shouldn’t surprise anyone. However, the Patriots potentially drawing a line in the sand on what they are willing to give up for Aiyuk is a smart move.

We know the Patriots could use a player of Aiyuk’s caliber to bolster their wide receiver unit. But at the same time, if the 49ers reportedly turned down a second-round pick for Aiyuk, the next best option would be a first-round pick.

Unfortunately, the Patriots can’t give that pick away as they are in rebuild mode. The 2025 NFL draft class is projected to have talented players at wide receiver, who could be equal to or better than Aiyuk.

Nonetheless, if Aiyuk is still unhappy over the next few weeks, maybe the 49ers might be willing to come down on what they want for him, giving the Patriots a potential in. However, if you are the Pats’ front office, you are better off developing the guys you have and continuing to explore the trade/free agent market over the next year for upgrades.

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