On Monday night, reporting emerged out of the Bay Area that both the Browns and Patriots had the framework of a deal in place for 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
In his Tuesday press conference, New England head coach Jerod Mayo wanted to cut off any potential questions about the San Francisco wideout in his opening statement.
“I know what all you guys want to know, but one thing I learned from Bill [Belichick] is I don’t talk about players on other teams, so let me just go ahead and say that now,” Mayo said. “Let me say that as a player, I appreciated that — I appreciated that the only opinions that mattered were inside the walls. So, I’m still trying to apply that now going forward.”
Mayo was nevertheless asked if talks were ongoing and he deferred to the Patriots’ de facto G.M. Eliot Wolf.
“I’ll be honest with you, that’s more of an Eliot question,” Mayo said. “Right now, I’m just focused on the guys out here — the New England Patriots.”
He also said that he could not confirm that the Patriots and 49ers had negotiated a trade offer.
In general on New England’s receivers, Mayo said the group is working hard.
“They’re getting better every day,” Mayo said. “Now, from Eliot and my perspective, we’re always trying to get better — no matter what position we’re talking about, no matter how those guys get here, whether it’s through cuts or through trades or whatever. We’re always looking to improve our team to win now.”
If the Patriots are to make a deal for Aiyuk, they will presumably also need to sign him to a new contract. Aiyuk is scheduled to make $14.124 million on a fifth-year option but wants a market value deal now that 21 receivers make an annual average of at least $20 million.