FOXBOROUGH - Here’s three words that haven’t been floated around during the dog days of Patriots training camp in recent years: Excitement, suspense, curiosity. A hot trade rumor will do that for the masses. It gets the juices flowing.
The thought of the Patriots potentially landing 49ers star Brandon Aiyuk had everyone on high alert starting with Jerod Mayo. “I know what all of you guys want to know,” Mayo said in his opening remarks to the media, immediately throwing out a tease to reports the Patriots were in the running for Aiyuk. Mayo then clammed up.
If there was anything he learned from former coach Bill Belichick, it was to avoid talking about players on other teams. And yet, Mayo dropped a few clues. He let it be known he spoke to Kendrick Bourne, who reports suggest would be part of the package the Patriots would send to the 49ers in exchange for Aiyuk.
“I feel like the story is so much further along than anything else,” Mayo said, acknowledging that it exists. “I just wanted to make sure we cleared the air. I do believe in being transparent with the players and really just setting those guys at ease.
” For the media attending practice, every action caused a reaction. It was impossible not to see everything through the lens of the Aiyuk rumors. When de facto GM Eliot Wolf was seen on the phone in a remote area on the field, everyone’s blood pressure rose.
Could that have been the clincher? Had Aiyuk chosen the Patriots over the Browns and Steelers, .