Joey Porter Jr Has Damaging Words For The Steelers After Big Trade To Cowboys

The Pittsburgh Steelers made headlines on Wednesday night when the franchise finally made a decision on what to do with star cornerback Joey Porter Jr. The two sides were clearly not going to come to an agreement on a deal, and Porter continued to state that his back was flaring up so he could not play. Pittsburgh and General Manager Omar Khan finally had enough, and the Steelers decided to trade Porter to the Dallas Cowboys where he will reunite with George Pickens and Broderick Jones. Pittsburgh got back a second-round pick in the 2028 NFL Draft in the deal, as well as a sixth-rounder in 2027 that will convey if Porter is active for two or more games.

The entire saga was ugly between Porter and Pittsburgh, and there have been plenty of reports that state that the organization was disrespectful with the offers that were given to Porter, or the cornerback was just refusing to play. There was really only one way that this whole thing would end, and that was via trade. Dallas and Pittsburgh struck a deal once again, and plenty of fans in Pittsburgh are unhappy once again. Porter spoke to the media in Dallas for the first time on Thursday afternoon and shared how he felt disrespected by Pittsburgh. Porter was asked by a local reporter if he felt disrespected at any point with negotiations in Pittsburgh.

"Definitely," Porter said. "Definitely, like I said, it was a hard process. Lots of ups and downs. Definitely felt disrespected. Definitely felt, um, undervalued, but that's old news now. That's how I look at it. I'm on to new beginnings, new chapters, and like I said, I'm a Cowboy. I'm in Dallas. I'm happy about that."

It was reported that there was a clear discrepancy between how Porter viewed himself and how the Steelers viewed his value, and that is where the disrespect comes into play. Pittsburgh valued him enough to have their initial asking price in a trade be a first-round pick, but they didn't feel it was necessary to pay him like one. That disrespect led to Porter not wanting to take the field for the Steelers, which is why he is going to play in Dallas without a new deal.

There was some speculation that the Steelers did not take negotiations with Porter seriously at all throughout most of the offseason, and the franchise then tried to corner him against the franchise's self-induced deadline of the regular season starting. This put Porter in a tough place, and it also didn't help the organization at all either. He made his intentions clear that he was not going to play without a new deal early on, and that was evidenced by the fact that he was placed on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list at the start of training camp. 

Porter was asked about being ruled out for Thursday Night Football on Wednesday when he was still a member of the Steelers, and he was asked whose decision that was.

"It was more on my end," Porter said. "I'll say that."

Porter did not want to play, and it is likely that that had nothing to do with his "back" injury. He has already said that he will play on Sunday for the Cowboys if the coaching staff wants him out there already and if he is comfortable in the defense, so that should tell fans just how legitimate his ailment really was.

Steelers May See Porter In The 2028 Regular Season

The Steelers are currently set to take on the NFC East during the 2028 regular season, and there is a chance that Porter could still be with Dallas when that time comes. He is not getting a new extension with the Cowboys immediately, but he stated in his press conference that he would like to be a Cowboy for the rest of his career.

What do you think about Porter's comments? Let me know on X, @brogannoey!

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