The Steelers still don’t have a clean answer on Joey Porter Jr., and that’s a problem with Week 1 closing fast.
Head coach Mike McCarthy said Wednesday that Pittsburgh is taking Porter through another limited ramp-up day, which keeps the cornerback’s status for Sunday’s visit from the Atlanta Falcons very much up in the air. Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported the update, and while it shows Porter is progressing, it’s not the same thing as a green light.
That uncertainty matters because Porter is not just another defender on the roster. At 26 years old, he’s Pittsburgh’s top outside cornerback and one of the few players on the defense built to handle an opponent’s best receiver without constant safety support. If he’s available against Drake London, defensive coordinator Patrick Graham gains a lot more flexibility.
The problem is that Porter still hasn’t done full-speed work in months.
He spent all of training camp and the preseason on the Physically Unable to Perform list after aggravating a back injury, and that came while his contract standoff with the Steelers played out separately. Since coming off PUP, he’s been limited to walkthroughs, warm-ups and individual ramp-up drills. He has not yet taken part in a full team session at game speed.
That gap is real. There’s a big difference between controlled work and being asked to survive an NFL game, where the demands are nonstop: sprinting, changing direction, absorbing contact and recovering snap after snap. Pushing that workload too hard too soon could create fatigue or another injury, especially after such a long stretch away from normal football activity.
So the Steelers would be smart not to treat Sunday like a full return simply because the calendar says Week 1. If Porter does get on the field, a limited role or a rotation with Asante Samuel Jr. would make more sense than throwing him into 60 defensive snaps.
There’s also the issue of timing inside the defense itself. Porter was in meetings, but he missed the installation period for Patrick Graham’s new scheme, so this isn’t a veteran stepping back into the exact same system he already knows.
Communication on coverage checks, route distribution and alignment with Jalen Ramsey and the safeties takes live reps. Individual talent can cover for some mistakes, but Atlanta has enough to stress a secondary that isn’t fully synced up, with Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson all in the mix.
If Porter can’t go, Samuel would likely pick up a bigger role outside. He brings experience, but that still changes how Graham can call the game, pressure the quarterback and decide when to leave corners on islands.
The contract piece only adds to the unease. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported that Pittsburgh has made an offer, but the sides are still not close and there’s plenty of work left before Sunday. Once the Steelers open the season, their long-standing policy shuts down extension talks until spring.
Christian Gonzalez’s record-setting deal has also pushed Porter’s leverage higher. That doesn’t mean Omar Khan should simply accept whatever number lands on the table, but letting a cornerstone defender enter the season without a deal carries obvious risk.
For now, Porter’s path is still tied to three things: his back, his conditioning and how much practice work he can handle. McCarthy’s update says he’s moving forward. It does not say he’s ready.
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For Pittsburgh fans, the choice is easy to understand and hard to settle. That season was undone in part by injuries to Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, and it ended with a loss to the Broncos in the AFC Divisional Round, leaving the old what-if questions hanging in the air all over again. Tomlins take does not close the case so much as remind everyone why it has lingered for so long. [Read more 🡒]