Steelers' Frustrated Trade Target Brandon Aiyuk Implies Reaching Out To Mike Tomlin Was Attempt At Levity

The Pittsburgh Steelers traded Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers for cornerback Donte Jackson in early March. Omar Khan added a key veteran to the cornerback room, but created a gaping hole at wide receiver. If Steelers fans can have faith in anything, it is that Khan plans to fill it. Fans don't know the plan yet, which leads to fascinating speculation. 

The Steelers have been rumored to be trading for Minnesota Vikings superstar Justin Jefferson, the Buffalo Bills Stefon Diggs, and Mike Tomlin's doppelganger Brandon Aiyuk.  None of those trades have materialized at this point, and the rumors haven't been confirmed in the slightest, but it doesn't mean Khan has given up, and that one won't happen before the 2024 season begins. 

Aiyuk, usually guarded on social media, fanned the flames by remarking about a photo comparing his striking resemblance to Tomlin. On Thursday, Aiyuk joined Nightcap with Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson. The San Franciso 49ers wide receiver explained his motivation for contacting the Steelers' head coach on X. 

"I wake up, and they're talking about another team that they got me supposed to be in trade talks with, whatever, whatever," Aiyuk explained. "I said 'hey, let me just go ahead. If everybody is saying this, this, and that, let me just go ahead and put out one of my little spots. I'll revert it back to Tomlin. We can have a little bit of fun with it.' We're professionals; it is what it is."

Aiyuk torched the Steelers in the 2023 season opener in Pittsburgh with 129 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The 49ers receiver has posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and is due $14 million in 2024 from his fifth-year option. San Francisco's General Manager John Lynch attempted to quell the Aiyuk trade rumors, but the pace of negotiations is frustrating the second-team All-Pro. 

"It's not easy. It's business," Aiyuk said. "We all trying to get to one thing, but like I said, they gonna do it with or without me. You are going to have a better chance with me. Just leave it at that. They know I'm going to be ready." 

The former first-round pick has not publicly demanded a trade, but he clearly wants a new contract. In 2024, $14 million for a number-one wide receiver is a bargain. Aiyuk is a top 10 wide receiver talent and knows what players of his stature command on the open market. 

The Jacksonville Jaguars were connected with Aiyuk and supposedly balked at the asking price of a first-round pick and veteran receiver Zay Jones. It has been speculated that the Steelers would have to pay a similar price by trading a first-round draft pick and Calvin Austin III to the 49ers. The Steelers traded away a first-round draft choice in 2020 when they acquired Minkah Fitzpatrick from the Miami Dolphins. It was the first time since 1967 that Pittsburgh traded away its first-round selection for a player. 

Steelers' New Offensive Coordinator Will Need Help From Omar Khan

Arthur Smith has a type when it comes to wide receivers. George Pickens fits in as a big physical receiver capable of making big plays down the field. Aiyuk is only 6' 0", but he has proven that he is an adept route-runner and plays a physical brand of football. It would be expensive, but a tandem of Aiyuk and Pickens would be formidable for Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. 

Khan could very well be waiting out the 49ers as he did with the Chicago Bears during the Justin Fields trade talks. Lynch could have every intention of re-signing his first-round draft pick, but if negotiations stall, the sale price might change as the draft approaches. If it does and the price is right, Khan could pounce and give his new offensive coordinator one of the top receiving tandems in the NFL. 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? Would you like to see Aiyuk in black and gold, or should the Steelers look to the draft to find Pickens' 2024 running mate? Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq. 

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