49ers awkwardly try to brush off Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk trade drama

Leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft, many of us were wondering just what exactly the San Francisco 49ers were going to do with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.

Was John Lynch ultimately going to pay Aiyuk on a long-term deal? If so, when is/was that deal coming? The rumors of an Aiyuk trade weren't going to stop anytime soon, it seemed.

Then, the day of the draft, a report came out that the 49ers were in fact trying to move up into the top 10 by trading either Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel. Now, that would have been something.

During Day 2 of the draft, though, Lynch attempted to put the rumors to bed in a somewhat-awkward manner, downplaying any trade rumors and trying to reassure fans and media that neither Aiyuk nor Samuel were going anywhere.

"We didn't entertain any of that today," Lynch said.

Furthermore, Lynch doubled down on his notion that there weren't any trade talks by stating the organization is thrilled with their wide receiver group and thrilled to add Ricky [Pearsall] to it.

The Ricky Pearsall pick might actually be a case of the Niners going 'best player available'

When the 49ers selected Ricky Pearsall in the first round Thursday night, it was easy to question whether or not that meant the beginning of the end for either Aiyuk or Samuel. But, if we look at Lynch's draft history, this may actually be a classic case of a general manager going with his gut and selecting the best player on his board.

Look at Lynch's conviction on Trey Lance just three years ago. The amount sacrificed to go up and get their guy looks silly now, of course, because of how the Lance situation played out. But, that doesn't mean Lynch didn't stick to his convictions.

What if Pearsall was truly the best player on the board at the time of the Niners' pick? It didn't matter that rumors were flying. It didn't matter that some may have had Pearsall as a Round 2 type of prospect. It didn't even matter that wide receiver wasn't a pressing need, if the team was truly going to hang onto both Aiyuk and Samuel.

The 49ers simply did what many teams try to do and took the best player on their board.

At least, that's what Lynch wants us to think. Do we believe him?