The New England Patriots reportedly dropped out of the Brandon Aiyuk trade sweepstakes on Tuesday night.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Patriots "are excited about their young receivers and want to focus on them."
New England drafted four wideouts -- Ja'Lynn Polk, Javon Baker, DeMario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte -- in the last two drafts, but it's hard to argue that a player of Aiyuk's production wouldn't have helped the offense that struggled last year.
The Patriots reportedly had an agreement in place with the San Francisco 49ers and a large contract offer that topped $30 million per year to Aiyuk, but the star wideout did not show any interest in going to New England, according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco.
Story continues below advertisement
Various members of Patriots nation flocked to social media to post their feelings regarding the missed opportunity.
With the Patriots out of the mix, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns are the top two teams to keep an eye on. While the details of the Steelers' proposal are unknown, the 49ers would reportedly acquire Amari Cooper from the Browns if Aiyuk chooses the latter.
Story continues below advertisement
Featured image via Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports Images
