“They say he can’t catch… but we’re gonna fix that.”
The No. 32 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, cornerback Joey Porter Jr. has dealt with plenty of expectations during his time with the Steelers.
For one, his father, Joey Porter Sr., was a great outside linebacker for the black and gold. And in the present, Porter Jr. has been tasked with holding down CB1 duties for a team that’s struggled to develop defensive backs in recent memory — and NFL passing offenses keep getting harder to defend.
Porter showed promise as a rookie; his second year as a pro in 2024 was good but not exactly lockdown. Per PFF, Porter allowed 48 receptions — 30th most in the NFL — and just four pass breakups in his sophomore campaign.
More worrying was his penalty problem. Porter was flagged a whopping 17 times in 2024, including an ugly, six-penalty performance against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13.
With Porter starting again on the boundary entering his third NFL season, it seems like the Steelers are investing in his play taking a leap forward.
Speaking on Pittsburgh’s 93.7 The Fan radio on June 20, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writer Ray Fittipaldo said the Steelers didn’t bring back defensive backs coach Grady Brown in 2025 because “Joey Porter has not developed the way (the Steelers) hoped and thought he would as a No. 32 overall pick in that draft.”
Instead, the team brought back a former assistant in Gerald Alexander, who worked with Porter in 2023, to take over the secondary.
“(Alexander) thinks (Porter) is elite at the line of scrimmage, in terms of disrupting,” said Fittipaldo.
“But it’s everything that happens after that where Joey struggles,” he added. “Your transition to your coverage, and once you’re close to your guy, don’t put your hands on him, and then be more opportunistic when the ball is in the air.
“He’s been kinda behind the eight ball in all three of those things.”
Porter has just two interceptions over 27 career starts. While hardly a tell-all statistic when it comes to the cornerback position, it’s certainly an area where the 24-year-old could improve.
“They say he can’t catch,” said veteran Steelers free agent signing Darius Slay on The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny on June 19. “But we’re gonna fix that. We’re gonna catch the rock this year.”
Porter had end-of-career Patrick Peterson as a mentor during his rookie season. Now, he’ll have guidance from another experienced cornerback in 2025.
“I have a good resume with me with younger guys, trying to help build them,” added Slay, a six-time Pro Bowler. “That’s my job. … I’m just here to help him. Do everything I can to make sure he succeeds at what he does, and try to get him … to be one of the best in the game.”
Slay noted that Porter, who has rare length at 6’2, has “a gift I didn’t have.”
Those in the Steelers building seem to agree that Porter has all the tools to be a star, even if he hasn’t reached his ceiling just yet.
Concluded Fittipaldo: “I think the potential for him to maybe be a Pro Bowl guy is there, someday, if he does put it all together.”