On Thursday, the Kansas City Chiefs traded OT Wanya Morris and a seventh-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for a 2027 sixth-round pick.
Morris was buried on Kansas City’s depth chart and started just one game last season, but according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, “multiple teams” were interested in his services once the Chiefs started shopping him.
From a Steelers perspective, there are two things to consider. First, the Falcons acquired a tackle who could potentially start against Pittsburgh in Week 1. But the more interesting angle is how it could impact the potential trade market for Broderick Jones.
To be clear, there hasn’t been any buzz about Jones getting traded. He’s been recovering from a neck injury that ended his 2024 season, and he still hasn’t participated in team drills during practice.
The Steelers also drafted Max Iheanachor in the first round, and the team moved Troy Fautanu to left tackle while starting Dylan Cook at right tackle as their starting offensive line in OTAs. That leaves Jones as an odd man out.
Once he gets healthy, if the Steelers are comfortable with his progress, they could theoretically move Fautanu back and play Jones on the left side. However, that feels unlikely.
They could keep Jones as a backup, too. But with three capable offensive tackles in Fautanu, Cook and Iheanachor, Jones could be a trade chip. The Steelers declined his fifth-year option, so he’s a free agent after the season, the same as Morris.
Jones also has been better and started more games in his career than Morris, with 38 career starts compared to just 16. While he’s had his ups and downs, the former first-round pick should be valued higher than Morris, a third-round pick in the same class as Jones.
However, the injury complicates things a bit. Any team acquiring Jones would need to be comfortable with his health, and coming off a serious injury, his value will be impacted a bit.
Morris, too, is coming off a serious knee injury that ended his season, though he appears to be in a better spot than Jones right now.
But seeing Morris and a seventh go for a sixth should make the Steelers confident that they could get at least a fifth-round pick in return if they were to trade Jones. Given that there was a heavy market for Morris, should Jones become available, it’s safe to assume he’d have multiple suitors.
The Steelers would have to weigh whether getting a fourth- or fifth-round pick is worth it, rather than keeping Jones around for depth. And again, there have been no indications that Jones is going to be traded or is even available.
But putting the pieces together, he could be a potential trade chip. The Morris trade should give the Steelers a good idea of the return they could get.