First Call: Brandon Aiyuk's admission about his negotiations; Ben Roethlisberger thanks Denver for Russell Wilson

Wednesday’s “First Call” has former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger sharing some thoughts about new Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson.

We also have an interesting admission from Brandon Aiyuk, news about a pair of former Steelers wide receivers and a health update on Gerrit Cole.

No kidding?

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is coming clean about one aspect of his drawn-out contract negotiations.

“I’m not going to lie. I made it a little more difficult than it needed to be at the end,” the San Francisco wide receiver said Tuesday via KNBR Radio.

“I’m not gonna lie. I made it a little more difficult than it needed to be at the end."

Brandon Aiyuk on contract negotiations ???? pic.twitter.com/yxLf5wFHIu

— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) September 3, 2024

Uh, “at the end?” How about since March, Brandon?

That’s when Aiyuk started his flirtation with the Steelers by making online overtures to head coach Mike Tomlin.

But what was especially interesting from that soundbite was Aiyuk saying that he and the 49ers were on pretty good terms for the past month. Conversations about Aiyuk coming to Pittsburgh in a trade really started to crest back on Aug. 7.

So if all that smoke was puffing out in Pittsburgh when the contract fires were actually cooling in San Francisco, then that lends credence to the notion that Aiyuk and his camp were perhaps just using the Steelers as a leverage point for their negotiations instead of legitimately trying to get into Black and Gold.

After nearly six months of trade speculation and a protracted contract-extension snarl, Aiyuk avoided having to play on his fifth-year option in San Francisco for 2024 by signing a four-year, $120 million contract extension that includes $76 million in guarantees.

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• Steelers' Mike Tomlin 'comfortable' with what he has seen from wide receiver group heading into season opener
• Steelers, Cameron Heyward agree to 3-year contract

Big Ben on Mr. Unlimited

Ben Roethlisberger’s “Footbahlin’” podcast is back. In the return episode, the retired Steelers quarterback took a little jab at the Denver Broncos for letting Russell Wilson jump to the Steelers while remaining on the Denver books.

“Thank you, Denver, for paying,” Roethlisberger said (at the 56:49 mark of the show). “Denver paid Russ like $38 million to go away. Which is OK. (A) nine-time Pro Bowler, Super Bowl (winner). And we’re like, ‘OK, we’ll take him. Thank you.’”

Roethlisberger also got into the dynamic of how things may go down between Wilson and Justin Fields at the QB position as 2024 moves along.

“The fan base right now is, I don’t know if it’s split, but there’s definitely some Fields guys,” Roethlisberger said. “He’s strong. He’s big. He’s fast. He can run. He can make throws on the run. Russ can definitely do some of that moving and create with his legs. No doubt about it. But he’s going to sit in the pocket because that’s just what he does a little more. He’s a big play-action pass guy. … So you have some fans that want Justin. They want that elusive ‘Let’s run it.’ And then you’ve got the guy who’s probably going to start and throw. My concern is, if Russ struggles, that Justin fan base is going to start to kind of grow.”

That’ll be on Tomlin to manage, especially since, as Roethlisberger pointed out, Tomlin probably sold Wilson on coming to Pittsburgh with everything just short of a guarantee that he would be the starter.

“I think it was always Russ’ job,” Roethlisberger said. “I know that Coach T talked about a competition. It was probably, like, ‘All right, Russ. There’s a 75% chance you’re getting the job. Even if Justin plays really well.’ At 75(%), it could have gotten back to (a) level playing ground. But I think it was always going to be (Wilson’s job).”

I totally agree on that point.

Miles on the move

Former Steelers special teams ace Miles Boykin is looking for a new home.

The New York Giants cut the wide receiver. That news is courtesy of Dan Salomone at Giants.com.

Roster Update: The Giants signed TE/FB Jakob Johnson to the practice squad and released WR Miles Boykin. pic.twitter.com/QdIOJyJWbq

— Dan Salomone (@Dan_Salomone) September 2, 2024

Boykin was always an important part of Danny Smith’s special teams units from 2022-23 and could play the role of a gunner on the coverage units. That job is now being played by the much smaller Scotty Miller.

During his two years in Pittsburgh, Boykin had just five catches for 28 yards.

Another former Steelers receiver, Dez Fitzpatrick, has signed with the Los Angeles Chargers’ practice squad.

Cole’s calf

Former Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole had to leave his start Monday night with a calf cramp. The New York Yankees’ ace felt some tightness warming up prior to the seventh inning of a game he ended up winning against the Texas Rangers 8-4.

Looks like just a calf cramp for Cole (we pray) pic.twitter.com/usC2uN1Ooo

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) September 3, 2024

On Tuesday, via ESPN.com, Cole said he was unsure of what went wrong, but the injury was not a concern.

“I really don’t have a great answer for it, but it feels good today,” Cole said.

That victory over Texas improved Cole’s record to 6-3 on the year after a delayed start because of an elbow injury. He struck out nine Rangers over six innings before leaving the game after 82 pitches, allowing just one earned run, four hits and a walk. His ERA is now at 3.65.