They should have made this kind of blockbuster trade two years ago for then-Bears linebacker Roquan Smith but instead watched the Ravens swoop in. They did make a similar trade a few years earlier when they stunned the football world by dealing a first-round pick to Miami for second-year safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The Steelers knew they would eventually have to sign Fitzpatrick to a mega deal, which they did in 2022, making him the highest-paid safety in the NFL.

The Aiyuk saga has been a topic for months, but it took a turn earlier this week when Aiyuk appeared on a TikTok video — one he obviously knew would go viral — telling his former college teammate Jayden Daniels that the 49ers "don't want me back."

The 49ers do want him back, of course, but at their price. And the price keeps going up for receivers, six of whom have signed extensions worth more than $24 million this offseason. The cost of a new Aiyuk deal likely would land at upwards of $30 million per season. Question is, what kind of return would push Lynch toward trading him?

Would the Steelers be willing to part with a first-round pick?

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network posted the following on X: "If Brandon Aiyuk is truly available via trade (don't know) I could make a strong argument Pittsburgh would be a perfect match."

Is he available? Well, it's like your house: It's available if somebody makes the right offer, yes? The 49ers have a way of keeping their stars, though Lynch clearly has attempted to secure the receiver position in case he jettisons either Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel at some point in the next year-and-a-half.

The best summation of their situation comes from Bay Area reporter Michael Silver, who posted the following three days ago:

"Very short version of where things stand with 49ers and their receivers:

1. They drafted (Ricky) Pearsall in the first round. He is a big part of the present and the future.

2. If Aiyuk ends up taking their best offer, Deebo will be gone after 2024.

3. If Aiyuk doesn't take their best offer, and (presumably) plays on the fifth-year option, it's Hunger Games between him and Deebo to see who stays beyond 2024.

4. There's still a chance Aiyuk or Deebo could be traded between now and the November deadline, if the offer's good enough and/or if things have devolved with Aiyuk."

If the offer's good enough. I would absolutely dangle next year's first-round pick. I'd compare it to the Fitzpatrick deal. You just pretend Aiyuk is your first-round pick, with the catch that you have to pay him like a free agent.

Lynch might be inclined to wait, but that doesn't mean the Steelers shouldn't make their best offer — if they haven't already.

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