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Steelers insider says team never expected to land WR Brandon Aiyuk

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 16: Brandon Aiyuk #11 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 16, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 16: Brandon Aiyuk #11 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 16, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The drama of Brandon Aiyuk finally came to a merciful ending on Thursday. The San Francisco 49ers and Aiyuk agreed on a $120 million contract extension meaning Aiyuk is not being traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers or anyone else.

According to Steelers beat writer Gerry Dulac, this is exactly what the Steelers expected all along. According to Dulac, the Steelers weren't surprised the Niners got a deal done and this was what they expected to happen.

This is a really curious point of view to take. The Steelers traded away Diontae Johnson at the beginning of free agency and made no real effort to replace him. We assumed this was all the long game to eventually land Aiyuk.

If we follow this logic, the Steelers never planned to actually trade for Aiyuk and they are content with the talent they have at wide receiver now. This doesn't make much sense at all given the sheer volume of credible sources who reported on the Steelers interest in getting Aiyuk.

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This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers insider says team never expected to land WR Brandon Aiyuk