The Pittsburgh Steelers want to land a wide receiver via trade, which has been reported for a while now. Obviously, the name thrown around the most has been Brandon Aiyuk from the 49ers, and that rumor was largely sparked out of Aiyuk’s own doing a month ago.
Aiyuk sparked speculation last month when he sent a message to Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin on X, stating “@CoachTomlin they saying we twins. What you think?”
But 49ers general manager John Lynch, who ran into Tomlin at Michigan pro day, threw cold water on the trade rumors, stating nothing is happening there.
“I promise you, nothing’s going on there,” Lynch said of the trade rumors at the NFL owner’s meetings in late March. “We’re actually talking to Brandon to try and figure something out. You know, we have a good history of working with the guys that we want to get done to get something done. So, can we do that? We’ll see. There’s a number of different directions that could go. But we appreciate the heck out of Brandon and what he is as a player. We want him to be a part of the Niners, so we’re going to work towards making that a reality.”
It seems unlikely, for now, that would happen. But there could be other players that the team looks to take an upside swing on. For example, the Tennessee Titans seem on the outs with former first-round pick Treylon Burks. Burks could win the slot wide receiver job, but he has failed to make the strides the team has wanted in the first two seasons in the NFL.
A highly-touted prospect who was supposed to replace A.J. Brown, Burks has not clicked yet with the Titans. But his dense frame, and noted yards after the catch ability all are reminiscent of what Smith likes in his wide receivers, so it would be no surprise if the team checked in on Burks, who might be on the outs after Calvin Ridley slotted into the lineup next to DeAndre Hopkins.
Burks would not cost much, but he is also not proven and does not fully check off the boxes to get a true upgrade in the building. But it does seem like Tennessee at least has him on the outs unless he can step up and prove to the new staff that he is worthy of being the No. 3 wide receiver. So, realistic, yes, but it does not check off a ton of boxes for the Steelers. But for a low cost upside swing, it might be something to watch.
More must-reads: