As we have seen, the market for free-agent wide receivers in this NFL offseason was thin to begin with, but has gotten decidedly thinner as we’ve neared the start of the actual new league year, which comes on Wednesday. That’s a bummer for the Patriots, who have seen the likes of Mike Evans re-sign with the Buccaneers, Tee Higgins get a franchise tag from the Bengals and Michael Pittman get tagged by the Colts.

But if the Patriots truly want the best possible receiver as they remake their offense, they were always going to have to look to make a trade. And the best trade candidate out there is with the defending NFC champion 49ers, where salary-cap restrictions could lead to a trade of star Brandon Aiyuk.

Now, Aiyuk wants to win. That makes the Patriots a tough sell to a guy who is in the final year of his contract and needs an extension. But if the Patriots were able to secure LSU star quarterback Jayden Daniels with the No. 3 pick, it might make the sale easier—Daniels started his career at Arizona State before transferring, where his top receiver as a freshman was none other than Aiyuk.

That’s the thrust of a recent pitch from the Bleacher Report podcast host Keith McPherson, who is also a host for WFAN in New York. “Jayden Daniels goes No. 3 to the Patriots, and then they make a trade, maybe on draft night, to go get Brandon Aiyuk,” McPherson said on a B/R stream.

Patriots Receivers Are ‘Cooked’

No doubt, McPherson has a point about the lack of talent in the Patriots’ receiver room, where two veteran signees—DeVante Parker and Juju Smith-Schuster—have been massive busts. Solid No. 2 option Kendrick Bourne is a free agent and Demario Douglas showed serious potential as a slot option as a rookie, but the team is badly in need of a true No. 1 threat.

The Patriots figure to add a receiver, maybe two, in the draft. But Aiyuk is only 25 (he turns 26 next week) and would check off a massive item on the to-do list.

“The Patriots receivers, they’re cooked,” McPherson said. “The Patriots, I don’t know what they’re going to do at quarterback, I don’t know what they’re going to do at receiver.

“There’s a lot of talk in this draft about how deep the wide-receiver class is, but if I’m picking a team to make a trade for Brandon Aiyuk where he could go and right away be the No. 1—Kendrick Bourne is probably out, Juju Smith-Schuster, no, DeVante Parker, no. (The Patriots) get Brandon Aiyuk, plug him in as the No. 1 receiver.”

Brandon Aiyuk Angling Out of San Francisco?

Of course, it’s hardly certain that the 49ers will trade Aiyuk, who is coming off an All-Pro season in which he racked up 1,342 yards on 75 catches with seven touchdowns.

But rumors of his unhappiness with the 49ers started when those in Aiyuk’s circle last month posted social media messages implying that Aiyuk is heading elsewhere. His close friend Draysean Hudson pointed out that Aiyuk had only three catches in the Super Bowl and added, “This is the exact reason why we leaving San Francisco.”

When those posts were brought up to Aiyuk he did not attempt to brush them off, saying he would stay with the 49ers only if it were, “the right move.” He also seemed bothered on social media by his lack of catches in the Super Bowl when he posted, “Don’t forget what got you there.”

That has set up a number of potential trade scenarios for the 49ers, and the Patriots are in position to fork over some valuable picks. They would not give up this year’s No. 3 pick, of course, but they have the No. 34 pick in this draft and could entice the 49ers by giving up multiple picks in this draft.

The Patriots have plenty of needs, of course. But getting Aiyuk for the long-term would be worth giving up picks in the short-term.