Chargers Reportedly Trade for OL Trevor Penning from Saints After Joe Alt Injury

With offensive tackle Joe Alt sidelined for the season with an ankle injury that will require surgery, the Los Angeles Chargers needed to bolster their offensive line ahead of Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET NFL trade deadline.

And they reportedly did just that.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the Chargers acquired offensive lineman Trevor Penning from the New Orleans Saints in a deal.

Unfortunately for Los Angeles, losing Alt has not been the only blow to the offensive line this season. It also lost Rashawn Slater to a season-ending ruptured patella tendon before the campaign even started in August.

Despite the attrition up front, the Chargers are still 6-3 and in ideal position to challenge for a playoff spot in the AFC. Yet the only realistic way they were going to build on their quick start was by addressing the lack of depth along the line.

Penning is a veteran option who has been in the league since he was a first-round pick out of Northern Iowa in 2022. He started all 17 games for the Saints last season and started each of the last six games this year.

He was sidelined by a toe injury at the start of the season but worked his way back into the lineup for the Saints.

From New Orleans' perspective, it makes sense that it would move on from Penning seeing how he is scheduled for free agency at the end of the season. This allowed the NFC South team to get something back in return before he potentially went elsewhere during the summer.

The Saints are also 1-8 and largely playing out the string for the rest of the campaign. They are in rebuilding mode, so moving on from an offensive lineman who may not have been with the team for the long-term future made sense.

And the Chargers jumped at the opportunity to address an area of need before the stretch run.