FRISCO, Texas -- Joey Porter Jr. wants to make one thing clear: the reason he’s been out isn’t about contract games, and he’s not interested in feeding that chatter.
Since the Cowboys acquired him in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Porter Jr. has been limited to four appearances in six possible games. He missed what would have been his AT&T Stadium debut in Week 5 on “Thursday Night Football” against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers because of a stomach bug, and he also sat out Week 9 at the Indianapolis Colts with an ankle issue.
The speculation around his absence has followed him anyway, especially after the pending free agent had felt “disrespected” in extension talks before the deal. But Porter Jr. pushed back hard on Thursday, saying the situation is strictly about his body.
“That has no, I don’t even know where that narrative comes from. I get it, it’s the internet.
I don’t really pay attention to that. I don’t really care for that,” Porter Jr. said after practice on Thursday.
“My goal is to win games and play football. That’s what I want to do.
If there’s any chance I can get on the field, I’m going to get on the field and do what I do best.”
What the Cowboys list as an ankle injury is, in Porter Jr.’s words, bigger than that. He said his heel and entire foot are “jacked up,” and he traced the problem back to his Dallas debut at the Houston Texans in Week 4. He tried to keep going for his new team, but that only made things worse.
“It’s all of the above. The whole foot is jacked up.
I was playing on it for a while, and it kept getting worse to where I had to shut it down,” Porter Jr. said. “I feel like all the guys are wanting me to get back.
They know what I can do when I’m out there on the field. I bring a presence out there, a game-changing type of presence.
I’m just trying to get back out there as fast as possible. ... I know exactly what is wrong with my foot, and we’re doing everything we can to get back to normal.”
For Porter Jr., the standard for returning is simple. He has to be able to move like a cornerback.
“Just need to be able to run, to cut. I play a position where I have to guard the most athletic people on the field. So if I can’t run, skip or jump, then I’m no use out there.”
He didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday, instead working off to the side with Cowboys director of rehab Britt Brown. Friday is the key checkpoint for whether he can suit up in Week 10 against the San Francisco 49ers, who are 7-1 and the NFC’s top seed.
The frustration is obvious. When Dallas pulled him in the second half of Week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals, Porter Jr. slammed his helmet. He said the decision to shut it down was difficult, but necessary.
“It really just depends on tomorrow and how I feel moving around. If they see and trust how I’m moving around is good enough to play on Sunday.
We’re going to go from there with that. I did some running today, that was pretty good.
I feel confident with that. First time in a little while,” Porter Jr. said. ...
“It got to the point to where it felt like I was a liability out there. I never want to be that for my team, especially if I feel like I can’t go, and I can’t keep up with guys that I should be keeping up with, then what am I doing out there on the field?
I’m just hurting the team. It was definitely a hard conversation to have with them because I’m a competitive person.
I always want to be out there and do good, so when I can’t be out there, it’s frustrating.”
Even with the missed time, Porter Jr.’s numbers still jump off the page. Among 289 players with at least 10 passes thrown their way, he leads the league in completion percentage allowed at 25% and pass yards per attempt allowed at 1.6, while ranking 12th in passer rating against as the primary defender in coverage. He also led the NFL in passer rating against as the primary defender in coverage in 2025, among 128 players with at least 60 pass attempts thrown their way per TruMedia, with a 49.1 passer rating allowed.
Porter Jr. said the production speaks for itself, even if some people keep questioning the timing of his absence.
“I just always have the most confidence in myself to feel like I can do what I can do against anybody, 70% or not,” Porter Jr. said. “That’s why I was out there with the 70% [health].
It was just getting worse. I really don’t care too much about the stats.
I feel like my tape is going to speak for itself. It is what it is with that ...
Still trying to keep the main thing the main thing and get back out there as fast as possible.”
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