Sometimes the best trades are the ones that never happen. When the San Francisco 49ers tried to land George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers , they met with a strong rejection. Cut to 2025, and Pittsburgh shipped Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys , anyway. As speculation builds around Pickens potentially hitting free agency in 2026 with a $30 million price tag, the Niners might be back in the mix, along with a few other NFC counterparts.

San Francisco wasn’t window shopping. According to 49ers insider David Lombardi, they “wanted Pickens in return for Brandon Aiyuk during those 2024 trade discussions with Pittsburgh.” The Steelers wouldn’t bite. By the time they dealt Pickens to Dallas, “the ink on Aiyuk’s deal had already dried.”

That missed connection stings. Aiyuk tore h

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