Vikings Trade Pitch Adds Versatile $14 Million Former 1st-Round Pick

The Minnesota Vikings have encountered a serious bout with the injury bug, and a trade to acquire help in the form of New Orleans Saints offensive lineman Trevor Penning could be a fitting solution.

Penning was the No. 19 overall pick of the 2022 draft, and he has spent his entire career with the Saints.

However, he could be due for a change of scenery, and the Vikings could be a fit.

Vikings Urged to Trade for Saints OL Trevor Penning

“It hasn’t worked out in New Orleans for Penning, the 2022 first-round pick who has struggled to find a starting position,” Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame Gilberto Manzano wrote on October 1, listing Penning as a move the Vikings “should make before the deadline.”

Vikings get:

• Trevor Penning

Saints get:

• 2027 sixth-round draft pick

“On the bright side, Penning offers versatility as a lineman with starting experience playing tackle and guard,” Manzano and Verderame wrote.

“The Vikings need all the help they can get. Not only has the offensive line disappointed, but three of the five starters are currently dealing with injuries. It’s usually a red flag when teams are willing to shop an offensive lineman because the good ones are rarely available. But it never hurts to add versatility and depth to a critical area.”

The Vikings do not own a sixth-round pick in 2026.

They own picks in the fifth and seventh rounds in that class, and could attempt to substitute either one for the sixth-rounder in a potential trade for Penning.

Trevor Penning Could Help Injury-Riddled OL

Penning is in the final year of his four-year, $14.1 million contract, and he will be a free agent next offseason. Still, the Vikings are so depleted up front due to various injuries that adding a player with his pedigree and versatility in a trade could be appealing.

Vikings starters, center Ryan Kelly, left guard Donovan Jackson, and right tackle Brian O’Neill are all sidelined heading into Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns in London.

Reserve lineman Walter Rouse is on injured reserve with Jackson.

The 6-foot-7, 325-pound offensive lineman was drafted as a tackle, and he has experience on both sides. However, he has since moved to guard. The only position Penning has not played, at least at the NFL level, is center.

OL Called ‘Biggest Need’ for Vikings

The Vikings’ offensive line woes are so dire that NFL.com’s Kevin Patra suggested they seek “depth” before the trade deadline.

“A week ago, I might have said corner was the Vikings’ biggest need, but a rash of injuries put a hole in their best-laid plans to solidify the O-line this offseason,” Patra wrote on October 1. “Brian O’Neill’s MCL sprain is a killer, as they experienced on Sunday versus Pittsburgh, when Carson Wentz was sacked six times, while Ryan Kelly and Donovan Jackson are also banged up. If Minnesota doesn’t secure better protection, it won’t matter who is under center.”

Notably, Wentz is also playing in place of an injured starter, J.J. McCarthy.

The Vikings will go on their bye week after facing the Browns. That could give them time to get as healthy as possible and assess their roster. It could even allow the Vikings to consider a trade for someone like Penning.

Chiefs Star Chris Jones Opens Up on Losing His Aunt Angela: ‘She meant a lot’

Kansas City star defensive tackle Chris Jones shared that a close family member passed away after suffering a heart attack during the Chiefs game Sunday night in Week 3.

Jones, still grieving, opened up at a press conference Friday about the death of his aunt, Angela. Jones attended her funeral in Mississippi on Saturday, before arriving back in Kansas City with 45 minutes to go before kickoff with the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday afternoon. Jones was visibly emotional during pregame.

“She meant a lot,” Jones said. “I actually stayed with her for a duration, a part of my life, probably five or six years. We was very close.”

“She was actually watching my game when she passed away,” he added.

Jones said he found out about Angela’s death after the Chiefs defeated the Giants, 22-9, on “Sunday Night Football,” Sept. 21. He added Angela was a “huge supporter” of him and the Chiefs, where he has spent his entire All-Pro career.

Jones Records Sack in Final Game for aunt Angela

During the game, Jones recorded a sack, and he expected to hear from his family with congratulatory messages, but instead received somber news.

“I was calling everybody saying, … we got the sack,” Jones said.

But soon responses of “call your mom” and “call your sister” began to worry Jones.

“Unfortunately, she had a heart attack watching the game,” Jones said.

GettyEAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY – SEPTEMBER 21: Chris Jones #95 of the Kansas City Chiefs greets fans following a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on September 21, 2025 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Andy Reid Prioritized Funeral, Made it Possible for Jones to Play

Jones, head coach Andy Reid and the front office worked out a plan so that Jones could attend the funeral and still play Sunday, if he wanted to.

“Me and Coach Reid talked about it, and more so it was about making my aunt’s funeral, and if there was a time frame where I could get back I would try to get back, but they completely understood and came up with a plan around it,” Jones said.

Reid expressed where the organization stood earlier in the week.

“He had to do what he had to do there. That’s not something you plan on,” Reid said during a press conference. “You take care of that first and the game kind of comes secondary when you start dealing with life and death.

Jones is an All-Time Great from Mississippi

Jones grew up in the small city of Houston, Mississippi. He attended Houston High School where he was considered a five-star recruit and was ranked among the top players in his class.

Jones played college football at Mississippi State University, where he played three years, forgoing his senior year to enter the 2016 NFL draft. A was selected in the second-round by the Chiefs.

Jones is a three-time Super Bowl champion, six-time All-Pro, and six-time Pro Bowler. He twice recorded 15.5 sacks in a season, in 2018 and 2022, and has tallied two career interceptions and 13 forced fumbles.

Known for his emotional displays during the national anthem, Jones has also used his platform off the field to promote environmental awareness, including starring in a PSA on Earth Day.

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