Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. has hit a wall with the Steelers in their contract negotiations.
The former Penn State star’s rookie deal is set to expire at the end of the season and extension talks, which went on up until just before kickoff against the Falcons in Week 1, have stalled after Porter rejected the Steelers’ final offers.
At the heart of the issue is the Steelers normally don’t guarantee money after the first year of a deal.
TJ Watt was one exception to the rule, but Pittsburgh did not want to deviate again when Porter’s team asked them to do so, according to ESPN.
Porter suffered a back injury in practice this week, further putting his status and future with the Steelers into question.
The injury comes after Porter missed all of training camp with a back issue, making him inactive in Week 1 due to not completing the ramp-up period in his return to practice.
“I’m with Joe, whatever he’s doing – whether it’s injury, whether it’s contract, whatever it is, I respect it,” Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen told reporters Thursday, per ESPN.
“I’m behind him 100%. I tell him every single time, ‘I respect how you go about your business every single day.’”
Fellow 2023 Steelers picks Keeanu Benton, Darnell Washington, and Nick Herbig all signed four-year extensions this offseason that only guaranteed money for the first year.
Other 2023 cornerbacks such as Christian Gonzalez and Devin Witherspoon also received recent market-setting contracts from the Patriots and Seahawks, respectively.
Per NFL insiders Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport, Porter requested a trade following his disappointment in being unable to come to an agreement with the Steelers.
Porter’s situation is complicated by his long history with the franchise.
His father Joey Porter was a linebacker for the Steelers from 1999-2006, winning Super Bowl XL with the team, and was inducted into their Ring of Honor last year.
“We’re here to support Joey in any way possible,” said Cameron Heyward, the Steelers’ longest-tenured player at 16 years. “I wish it would’ve got done, not my decision, but I still think he’s going to be a Pittsburgh Steeler in the future, and I just want to support Joey in the best way I can.”
