Steelers Receive Ruthless Update From Insider On Potential Joey Porter Jr Trade

The Pittsburgh Steelers are stuck in this cycle of insanity in regard to Joey Porter Jr. He is officially out for Week 2 with a supposed back issue; although, there is a belief that this is all a ploy to avoid playing for the organization. He might be either looking for general manager Omar Khan to break tradition and extend him. Either way, this is a terrible situation all around; and, if Pittsburgh is not going to break tradition, it has to ship the disgruntled cornerback out as soon as possible. 

While Porter has not publicly requested a trade, he it is likely that he and his agent are trying to get out of Pittsburgh, even if he does not get the extension he desires elsewhere. At this point, it seems like this relationship is irreparable, and the only way to truly settle this is for the Steelers to get whatever they can in exchange for the disgruntled star and move on.

Unfortunately, that seems to be a tough task as well. In an article from The Athletic, NFL insider Jonathan Jones wrote about what sources are telling him about how NFL teams see Porter's value.

"But there’s also a question of what he could even get in return," Jones wrote. "An acquiring team would likely need to be willing to part with a Day 2 pick and pay Porter a deal averaging somewhere in the mid-20s per year, at the very least. 'That’s a double whammy,' one AFC executive says. 'You would send a pick to pay Gonzo (Christian Gonzalez) or Surtain or Stingley. I don’t know about Porter.'"

There have been all kinds of reports that the NFL just doesn't see Porter as a top-flight cornerback despite his impressive play in 2025. If Jones' report is true, the Steelers may have to just settle for a low pick just to end this standoff once and for all. It doesn't help that Porter refusing to play has practically taken away all leverage from Pittsburgh. At first, they wouldn't trade him unless it was for more than a first-round pick. 

Jones continued on with more bad news about the trade front for Porter and how the NFL sees him at this stage of the hold-in.

"Surveying the league the past two weeks, it has been difficult to find a potential taker for Porter, at that price, this early in the season," Jones said. "The trade deadline is nearly two months away, so there is time for Porter’s injury to heal, for him to return to the field for the Steelers or for the Steelers to deal him to a team that becomes interested."

In basic terms, Porter seems to be as devalued as possible. It doesn't help that he is now seen as a player with "character concerns" due to him supposedly faking an injury and refusing to play. If he gets dealt to a team that won't pay him, the Steelers will likely get a third-round pick back. Maybe it has a condition that could boost the pick to a second rounder, but nobody even seems interested in making that kind of deal.

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Even if Porter is in the wrong here, it's not like the Steelers are in the right. They paid three backup/rotational players before their star cornerback, and they reportedly allowed him to fake this injury all throughout training camp while waiting until the last minute to give him an offer that was insulting. Pittsburgh could not have handled this situation much worse, and that will likely hurt it in future negotiations.

What do you think about Porter's severe lack of trade value after everything that's gone on over the last few months? Do you think the cornerback will get traded? Let us know on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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