Brandon Aiyuk to the Pittsburgh Steelers would have been the single biggest blockbuster trade of the 2024 NFL offseason, and it almost happened.
It would have happened, if not for Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton. Wait a second, what does Broncos coach Sean Payton have to do with the 49ers trading Brandon Aiyuk to the Pittsburgh Steelers?
In the words of Yoda in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace: "Everything."
According to The Athletic's Dianna Russini, the 49ers and Steelers basically had a deal in place involving Aiyuk, but it would have required the 49ers to get back a top-flight receiver in return. That's where a third team like Denver would have come in. Per Russini, the Broncos would have sent Courtland Sutton to the 49ers in this wacky three-team deal with Aiyuk going to the Steelers, and a third-round pick going to the Broncos.
The 49ers only were willing to trade Brandon Aiyuk if they could get a top-flight WR to replace him. They offered a third-round pick to Denver for Courtland Sutton, and then would’ve dealt Aiyuk to the Steelers, but the Broncos declined the offer.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) August 29, 2024
So, he stays in SF.
Broncos get small revenge on Russell Wilson by blocking Brandin Aiyuk trade
The Broncos obviously have their own stuff to worry about these days with rookie quarterback and first-round pick Bo Nix about to take the ball in Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks. Trading away your #1 receiver when you're about to start the first rookie quarterback in Week 1 since John Elway might not be in the best interest of the team.
With that said, people would have thought this offseason that getting a third-round pick for Courtland Sutton would be a steal. Most assumed the Broncos would get a Day 3 pick -- at best -- for someone like Sutton. The Broncos have allegedly turned down multiple pretty quality offers for Sutton in recent years, so this is as much a commitment to Sutton by the team as anything else.
But you can't not notice the fact that the Broncos prevented something huge from happening for Russell Wilson here. The Broncos cut Wilson this offseason, taking on an NFL-record $85 million in dead salary cap space to do so. They were clearly motivated to move on from Wilson no matter the cost, and things didn't end well for Russ in the Mile High City. The trade to acquire him will go down as one of the worst in NFL history.
Wilson didn't do the Broncos any favors on the salary cap by taking the veteran minimum on a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, sticking the Broncos with just under $38 million in cash owed to him this year.
At the very least, the fact that Sean Payton blocked this blockbuster trade from happening is a little funny due to the friction between Russell Wilson and the Broncos, who play each other in Denver in Week 2 of the 2024 season. You can't help but think, at the very least, that not letting Wilson get Aiyuk in the mix was a cherry on top of saying "no" for Sean Payton.
The 49ers didn't want to have to trade Brandon Aiyuk, but he wasn't accepting their offer for the longest time. At last they relented and were willing to trade him to the Steelers, on the condition that they could get a quality receiver back in return. The Broncos weren't willing to play the role of third wheel on this date, and the 49ers ended up keeping Aiyuk after all (to the tune of $120 million over four years).
The biggest losers in all of this are the Pittsburgh Steelers and Russell Wilson. There's no doubt that Sean Payton is okay with that.