The Steelers’ effort to keep Joey Porter Jr. in Pittsburgh reportedly ran into one stubborn issue: guarantees.
According to Ian Rapoport, the team’s long-standing approach of avoiding money guaranteed beyond the first year of a contract ended up derailing a potential extension with the cornerback. Pittsburgh had put an offer on the table that reached $28 million per year in average annual salary, a figure that would have placed Porter seventh among cornerbacks. It was a strong starting point, even if it still fell short of the $30 million-a-year line the top players at the position have been chasing.
But the deal never got over the finish line. Rapoport reported that the Steelers were not willing to guarantee anything beyond the first year, sticking to an organizational policy they rarely break.
Their proposal did include injury guarantees, but there were no full guarantees beyond 2026. That was not enough for Porter to end his hold-in and suit up for Pittsburgh.
Instead, the Steelers moved on and traded Porter to the Cowboys this past week. The move also cleared up the back injury he had been dealing with since the start of camp, and he is expected to make his Dallas debut today.
Porter, 26, comes from NFL bloodlines as the son of longtime outside linebacker Joey Porter. Before entering the league, he spent three seasons as a starter at Penn State and earned third-team All-Big 10 honors twice, then first-team honors in his final year.
Pittsburgh drafted him with the first pick of the second round in 2023. At the time of the trade, he was in the final season of his four-year, $9,618,343 rookie deal, which included a $3,995,158 signing bonus. The Steelers received a second-round pick and a conditional sixth-rounder in return.
In 2025, Porter played 14 games for Pittsburgh and finished with 52 total tackles, one sack, one interception, and 14 pass deflections.
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