Mike McCarthy Gives Important Update On Steelers Injured Cornerbacks

The Pittsburgh Steelers have spent nearly all of training camp with two major pieces of their secondary parked in the PUP waiting room. Mike McCarthy has refused to turn the absence of Jalen Ramsey and Joey Porter Jr. into a daily medical drama. On Tuesday, Pittsburgh finally received an update that made the waiting feel less ominous.

According to a Tuesday report, McCarthy said Ramsey and Porter continue to make progress in their returns from the Active/Physically Unable to Perform List. The head coach also did not appear to have much long-term concern about either cornerback. Pittsburgh still does not have a public return date for either player, but “progressing” is a much friendlier August word than “setback.”

Ramsey has been on PUP since the Steelers reported to Saint Vincent College after suffering a knee injury during mandatory minicamp. Porter joined him on the list when camp opened after aggravating his back during a mobility workout. Neither has practiced during camp, leaving Pittsburgh to install a new defense without two players expected to occupy major roles in it.

General Manager Omar Khan initially said Pittsburgh planned to be smart with Ramsey and estimated his absence at a couple of weeks. That window came and went without Ramsey joining practice, while McCarthy consistently avoided putting a date on either return. The lack of information created growing concern around Ramsey.

McCarthy’s latest tone does not mean Pittsburgh can circle a practice on the calendar and start printing welcome-back banners. The Steelers have not announced that Ramsey or Porter will participate this week or be activated by a specific date. It does suggest the conversation can remain centered on when they return instead of whether something has gone wrong behind the scenes.

Pittsburgh built a large chunk of its defensive flexibility around them. Porter is expected to remain one of the primary outside corners, while Jamel Dean gives the Steelers another experienced boundary option. Ramsey can move around the formation and gives defensive coordinator Patrick Graham considerably more freedom to disguise what Pittsburgh is doing before the snap.

Ramsey’s job is not the easiest assignment to walk into after several weeks working away from team periods. Graham can use him inside, outside or in specialized packages, which means his return involves more than proving his knee feels good enough to run. The communication, conditioning and timing attached to those roles have to catch up, too. Football tends to punish “I think I remember where I’m supposed to be” rather quickly.

Porter has a more familiar lane, but missed reps still carry a cost. He started 41 games over his first three NFL seasons and led Pittsburgh with 14 passes defensed in 2025. The Steelers know what he can do on the boundary. What he has missed is an entire summer of practicing Graham’s system at full speed next to the teammates who will share those coverage responsibilities.

Pittsburgh has at least squeezed something useful out of the absence. Younger defensive backs have been forced into more meaningful repetitions, and rookie Daylen Everette has been among the players gaining extra exposure. McCarthy said earlier in camp that he did not view the veterans’ absence strictly as a setback because they remained involved in meetings and communication while younger players received work.

That is one of those silver linings coaches enjoy much more when the injured starters are actually expected back. Extra reps can deepen a secondary, but they are less charming when they become the permanent plan. Pittsburgh did not spend the offseason assembling options so August attrition could choose the starting lineup for Graham.

The Steelers also have enough time to resist forcing the issue. Preseason football offers useful work, but there is little value in rushing Ramsey or Porter onto the field merely to collect an exhibition snap. If McCarthy believes controlled rehabilitation and practice work give them a better path toward September, Pittsburgh can afford to let the preseason continue without turning either return into a race.

The more pressing concern will be how quickly both players can transition from rehabilitation to football shape. Conditioning work on the side can preserve plenty, but it cannot perfectly reproduce a receiver changing direction in front of a corner or an offense snapping the ball before everyone feels politely organized. Those reactions are built through repetition, and Ramsey and Porter have fewer of them available than Pittsburgh originally planned.

Steelers Can Finally Trade Medical Mystery For Football Questions

For most of camp, every update on Ramsey and Porter created another version of the same question: when are they coming back? McCarthy has not answered that yet, but his latest assessment at least moves the discussion toward what happens once they do.

Graham will have to decide how aggressively to reintegrate both players, especially Ramsey, whose versatility could make him one of the most important pieces in the defense. Porter needs enough work to restore timing without Pittsburgh pretending he has forgotten how to play cornerback during a few weeks on PUP. The coaching staff can manage those workloads much more comfortably if long-term health is not hanging over the conversation.

There is still reason for caution. “Making progress” is not the same as passing a physical, practicing in pads or being ready for Week 1, and McCarthy has been careful not to promise anything the medical staff has not delivered. The Steelers can be encouraged without turning one optimistic update into a clearance notice.

After weeks of watching two major defensive pieces from the side, Pittsburgh finally has a little less mystery attached to the secondary. Ramsey and Porter are moving forward, McCarthy does not sound worried about the long view, and the PUP waiting room may finally be getting closer to losing two of its most recognizable occupants.

#SteelerNation