PITTSBURGH — When Joey Porter Jr. was coming out of college, The Athletic’s draft analyst Dane Brugler provided a scouting report that showed the two sides of the young defensive back.
For strengths, Brugler wrote: “long and lanky oversized frame tailor-made for press-man duties… uses his go-go gadget arms to reroute receivers off the line of scrimmage…. two-hand jam disrupts timing and sets the tone for the route.”
And weaknesses? “Grabby with wild limbs… flag magnet on film… more likely to batter receivers at the top of the routes rather than sink and redirect.”
Herein lies the double-edged sword: the same physical, in-your-face playing style that made Porter one of the top defensive backs in his draft class could simultaneously cause him problems in the NFL. Now in his second season, the Pittsburgh Steelers young corner has shown both the upside and the warts that Brugler anticipated.
On one hand, Porter quickly established himself as the Steelers’ most-reliable corner, capable of shadowing an opponent’s top weapon or playing on an island without much safety help. On the other hand, his physical nature has led to numerous flags.
Recently, those penalties have come in bunches. During Sunday’s victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, the second-year corner out of Penn State was called for six penalties (four accepted). That included two that set the Bengals up at the 1-yard line for eventual touchdowns.
On the season, Porter has been whistled for 14 penalties. Nine of those have been accepted, making the corner tied with Denver’s Pat Surtain II as the NFL’s second-most penalized defensive player. Only Detroit rookie DB Terrion Arnold (10 penalties) has more infractions against him.
“I still feel confident in how I play,” Porter said. “I watched the tape. There’s not guys that are really beating me that are getting a lot of separation. It’s just calls that I need to work on myself and know that I just got to get better. At the end of the day, I’m trying to be great. I know to do that I’ve got to clean up the stuff I’ve been doing.”
When it comes to correcting up the miscues, there’s a fine line here. The Steelers recognize that the last thing they want to do is take away Porter’s strengths in an effort to minimize his weaknesses. Coach Mike Tomlin explained that he has a higher tolerance for penalties, especially against a physical receiver like Tee Higgins.
“You have to match physicality of these big people, and sometimes you do so at risk,” Tomlin said. “That’s just a tight rope that I and he are willing to walk in an effort to be competitive. One thing we’re not going to do is turn it down and allow him to catch the ball.
“When we play Shaq, we’re going to use our fouls,” the coach continued with a smile. “We’re not going to allow them to get us off the block, if you need a basketball analogy.”
Now, it should be noted that playing corner — especially the way the Steelers deploy Porter — is one of the toughest positions in sports. Just last week, the Washington Commanders cut former first-round pick Emmanuel Forbes Jr., a corner who was drafted 16 picks ahead of Porter (No. 32 overall) in the 2023 draft. Growing pains are inevitable, no matter how talented a player may be.
“We ask Joey to do a lot,” defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said. “We put him on the backside against the best receivers. Or maybe it might not be the best receiver, but (Joey’s) not getting a lot of help. Some days are going to be rougher than others. It’s just a matter of getting back in the lab.”
While Tomlin doesn’t want to take away Porter’s physicality — he often encourages it — the coach acknowledged that the cornerback can refine his technique as a way to avoid costly penalties. Last season, Patrick Peterson explained that a crossover step at the line of scrimmage often put Porter out of position.
“Certainly, he could have been better from a technical standpoint,” Tomlin said. “In review of the tape, there were some technical things at the line of scrimmage that oftentimes lead to circumstances down the field could be better.”
For a young defensive back to overcome his shortcomings and achieve his full potential, it’s important to remain confident and have a short memory. The way Porter was raised, that’s never been an issue.
“He’s got a serial killer’s mentality,” Tomlin said. “If you’re going to be a top-flight corner, you better. That’s probably one of the things that I knew about him because of our personal relationship, that really made me comfortable drafting him. It’s not fake. It’s real. He’s not running from the fight, he’s running to the fight.”
Porter laughed when he heard that description.
“He just knows that I don’t really get knocked off my pivot, get knocked off my game too much,” Porter said. “Things happen. He knows I like to bounce back and prove myself again. That’s what I’ve got to do this upcoming Sunday.”
This upcoming week, Porter will be tested in a number of ways. Since the Cleveland Browns turned to Jameis Winston, they’ve become an aggressive offense behind their pass-happy QB. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Porter frequently matched up against Jerry Jeudy, a proficient route runner who has become Winston’s favorite target.
At the same time, the game will be officiated by referee Land Clark’s crew. They’ve called 15 defensive pass interference penalties so far this season, which ranks among the highest rate in the league.
The confident Porter is up to the challenge.
“I know what I’ve got to do to be great and help this team win,” Porter said. “I just want to be a contributing factor to the team’s success. I just got to keep working.”
(Photo: Justin Berl/Getty Images)
