The summer of discontent rolls on for Brandon Aiyuk, although this time he’s ratcheting up the stakes.
Yesterday, Aiyuk—who has wanted a new contract all offseason—officially requested a trade from the Niners.
We now enter a familiar holding pattern where Aiyuk wants to be traded or paid and San Francisco doesn’t want to pay or trade him.
It’s an unfortunate spot for Aiyuk because he has zero leverage. The Niners are clearly in “win now” mode and have very little incentive to ship him for anything other than a godfather offer.
We’ve seen other WRs in similar positions and they only have a few levers they can pull to try to get paid:
- Post cryptic subtweets
- Request a trade
- Threaten to holdout
Normally, the player blinks first, especially because holding out means fines for missing camp and even bigger ones for each preseason game.
Maybe Aiyuk can follow in the footsteps of Deebo Samuel and Robbie Gould and instigate something getting done, but the most likely scenario is Aiyuk sulking his way back to camp and getting on the field.
If you disagree with my forecast, I highly recommend loading up on as much George Kittle (you should be doing that anyway, tbh) and Ricky Pearsall (although he now has an injury) as you can.
What is in today’s newsletter?
- Sam Wallace’s Dynasty Breakout Watch
- Watercooler: Matthew’s Top 150 Rankings
Dynasty Breakout Watch
by Sam Wallace
🚀 JA'LYNN POLK, WR - PATRIOTS
Fantasy Life Dynasty Rank - WR67
Rookies are such a fun bet in dynasty leagues, especially ones that were not Round 1 draft picks. Regardless of what happens in Year 1, they really can't lose value. This is how I'm approaching these next three players.
The Patriots drafted Ja'Lynn Polk with the 37th pick as they now seek to surround Drake Maye with as much help as possible.
Polk was a versatile player coming out of Washington, where he played alongside Rome Odunze. He lined up all over the field which gives the Patriots flexibility about how they use him. That's super helpful for a team rebuilding its offensive core.
In fact, during his final two seasons at Washington, Polk played 37.3% and 41.1% of his snaps from the slot, respectively.
Polk came in at No. 8 in our Rookie WR Model as a Tier 3 option. His age (22), draft capital, and landing spot are reasons enough to be optimistic for the future at his current price point.
The Patriots can't be too picky about their offensive weapons right now as they project to be one of the worst teams in 2024. Their receiver room consists of veterans Kendrick Bourne, DeMario Douglas, K.J. Osborn, and Jalen Reagor (to name a few) and fellow rookie Javon Baker.
There's a clear path ahead for Polk to build chemistry with Maye over the next few years as this team tries to turn things around offensively.
🚀 JERMAINE BURTON, WR - BENGALS
Fantasy Life Dynasty Rank - WR73
Understanding team environments, contract situations, and draft capital can all help a savvy dynasty manager make more informed decisions throughout the year. For the Cincinnati Bengals, the major storyline has been the future of Tee Higgins.
It does feel like 2024 will be Higgins' last in Cincinnati. Joe Burrow is already under contract and superstar teammate Ja'Marr Chase will soon get his bag.
So, to future-proof their offense, the team went out and drafted Jermaine Burton in Round 3 (80th overall). The loss of Tyler Boyd only increased their need to have another viable weapon both now and moving forward.
Burton is an older prospect who fell to Round 3. He wound up sliding in at WR12 in the Rookie WR Model.
Last season, over half of Burton’s receiving yards came on pass attempts of 20+ yards, which is the top mark for this rookie class. Also, his PFF grade on those routes is the sixth-best in his class.
Sometimes, dynasty football doesn't have to be hard. All I need to know is the Bengals drafted a talented, above-average athlete from a high-end program and he'll get to play alongside Burrow and Chase for the foreseeable future. It might take a few years for Burton to find his role but in the post-Higgins era, the WR2 job is his to lose.
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👀 FADING Christian McCaffrey at 1.01? A case can be made…
🤔 Are you buying or selling Puka Nacua at his ADP? Ian and Dwain have thoughts.
🏃♂️ Training camps are underway. Let the games begin.
🏆️ Matthew’s Top 150 rankings are here. Check it out.
🤣 Should you trade for Josh Allen? How about you ask Josh Allen?!
🥯 Breece Hall’s bagel order is…well, it’s something.
🙏 Gambling charges dropped for this Patriots WR. Nice.
💨 Teammates gassing up teammates is back. Here’s Trey McBride on MHJ.
