When the Pittsburgh Steelers kick off versus the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football, they will do so without CB Joey Porter Jr. The Steelers star cornerback is now the Dallas Cowboys star cornerback after a late-night trade on Wednesday night.
The process that led to the Porter trade started percolating in the offseason, with Pittsburgh’s policy of not negotiating extensions during the season creating an artificial, if not solid, deadline for a deal. Porter then missed the first three games
of the Steelers’ season but seemed on track for Week 4 on the road versus AFC North rivals, the Browns.
Porter was listed as a full participant in walkthroughs on both Monday and Tuesday, with a note that it was “not injury related”, but a more active practice on Wednesday saw Porter ruled out with a back injury.
According to Albert Breer, Pittsburgh fully expected Porter to start this week prior to Wednesday’s practice:
This was the week they’d agreed to bring him back, with the team set to play on Thursday against the Browns. He was listed as an estimated full-go for practices on Monday and Tuesday (estimated because the team had walkthroughs both days), lined up with the first defense in walkthrough, and the coaches went into midweek expecting him to start in Cleveland.
From starter to ruled out to on another team. Wednesday was the straw that broke the camel’s back for the Steelers:
Instead, Porter showed up for what was very light work on Wednesday, told the coaches his back was acting up, and pulled himself from practice, delivering the team a surprising blow a little over 24 hours before the game. At that point, the trust between the team and Porter, already strained, was severed. So the Steelers aggressively shopped him, aiming to get him off the roster before kickoff.
Pittsburgh acquired a 2028 second-round pick as well as a late pick in 2027, which Breer reported is based on Porter’s playing time this season. The Cowboys valued the pick they sent as a third-rounder, which they likely could receive as a Compensatory Pick if Porter signs a big deal elsewhere in the offseason.
Not exactly a huge haul for a starting-level cornerback whom the Steelers expected to start tonight against the Browns.
Are you surprised that the Steelers gave in and how quickly the trade happened? How big of an absence do you think Porter will be tonight?
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