Steelers Must Act Now to Secure Joey Porter Jr. Amid Contract Stalemate

Joey Porter Jr.'s situation with the Pittsburgh Steelers has been eventful recently. The cornerback was listed on Pittsburgh's injury report as a full participant in Monday's and Tuesday's practices, for the first time this season, ahead of Thursday night's game with the Cleveland Browns . The reports were an estimation of Porter's participation because walkthroughs were held with the short game week. He was listed with a not injury related/conditioning notation.

Porter hasn't played so for this season. He spent the entire preseason on the physically unable to perform list with a back ailment while involved in a contract dispute with the Steelers. Porter, who is in the final year of his four-year rookie contract, is scheduled to make $3.924 million on a $4,922,790 salary cap number this year. Porter's back flared up ahead of Week 2's game against the New England Patriots . He was limited in practice last week as part of an extended "ramp-up" period.

Reading between the lines, Porter's "back issue" and "ramp up" are a byproduct of his contract stalemate. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac revealed last week that a Steelers offer averaging slightly more than $27 million per year was rejected around the same time Porter publicly acknowledged that the well established team precedent against negotiating during the season wouldn't be broken to sign him to a new deal. Porter also said that he would definitely play this season without giving a timeline for his return. Although the Steelers beat the Cincinnati Bengals 30-27 in Week 3, Porter's absence exposed a vulnerability in Pittsburgh's defense. A struggling Asante Samuel Jr . was replaced at cornerback late in the game for rookie Daylen Everette , a 2026 third-round pick.

A majority of NFL teams attempt to preserve contractual precedents at almost all costs. The concern is making a concession to one player will open the floodgates for other players on the team to expect similar treatment in the future. I didn't consider this type of rigidity to be sound business practices when I was an agent. In actuality, teams should be able to make distinctions based on each player's particular circumstances without jeopardizing the integrity of a policy.

The Steelers have already made distinctions when breaking the precedent that the only fully guaranteed money is in the first contract year with All-Pro edge rusher T.J. Watt's initial contract extension in 2021. The base salaries in Watt's second and third years were fully guaranteed at signing. Prior to that, the only salary guarantees after the first year were injury only. That's how it was with all of former longtime Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's contracts.

The Steelers have held the line on salary guarantees after Watt. Besides Watt's second contract extension in 2025, the only other exception has been with wide receiver DK Metcalf , whose second year was fully guaranteed at signing in the new deal he received in connection with last year's trade from the Seattle Seahawks .

The extensions for defensive tackle Keeanu Benton , edge rusher Nick Herbig and tight end Darnell Washington , all fellow members of the Steelers' 2023 draft class with Porter, have injury guarantees in the second year. Large third day of the league year roster bonuses in the later contract years are supposed to be substitutes for the lack of contract guarantees. The Steelers should be fully capable of making limited exceptions to the in-season negotiating policy in extenuating circumstances as demonstrated with salary guarantees.

A player of Porter's caliber with an expiring rookie contract is supposed to be a core player for a franchise. Porter hasn't given up a touchdown in 1,467 snaps dating to Week 8 of the 2023 season, according to the NFL's Next Gen Stats. Opposing quarterbacks only completed 48.3% of passes (29 of 60 attempts) for a 56.2 passer rating last season when targeting Porter, per Pro Football Focus.

What does the future hold?

Porter's future with the Steelers seems uncertain. I know from personal experience during my agent days that when getting paid in a contract dispute seems like an exercise in futility, the goal can shift to getting traded. That's what happened when Keenan McCardell, who is now the Minnesota Vikings ' wide receivers coach, was holding out from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . He was eventually going to come back to the Buccaneers around the middle of the season shortly after the trade deadline, which was following Week 6's games in 2004, to prevent his contract from tolling. The San Diego (now Los Angeles) Chargers acquired McCardell a couple of hours before the trade deadline putting an end to his 82-day holdout.

Porter, who is represented by Athletes First's David Mulugheta, has denied reports he has asked for a trade. It can't be ignored that Mulugheta has experience getting clients in disputes with teams traded.

Defensive back Jalen Ramsey ushered in a new tactic for disgruntled players to use against a team. He was the first to have a hold-in. It took place early during the 2019 season with Ramsey missing three Jacksonville Jaguars games primarily because of a "back ailment" after a rift with the front office. Having a mysterious hard to dispute injury made it more difficult for the Jaguars to take disciplinary action against Ramsey. He got his desired result -- a change in scenery -- of his hold-in when he was dealt to the Los Angeles Rams a couple of weeks before the 2019 trade deadline. Ramsey is currently a teammate of Porter's.

Micah Parsons borrowed a page from Ramsey's playbook while having a contract dispute with the Dallas Cowboys . The All-Pro edge rusher cited "back issues" that kept him from practicing during his training camp hold-in last year. Parsons was dealt to the Green Bay Packers shortly before the 2025 regular season started.

The Steelers are listening to trade offers but not actively shopping Porter. A high asking price to obtain Porter reportedly has been set. Because the Steelers aren't initiating trade talks, it wouldn't be surprising for general manager Omar Khan to have initially insisted on at least a first-round pick or the equivalent for Porter. Assuming Khan is inclined to deal Porter, he will likely be able to maximize his return as the Nov. 10 trade deadline approaches.

A new contract may not be immediately required if Porter is traded. McCardell was comfortable playing under his existing contract to get away from the Buccaneers. The Chargers indicated that McCardell's contract would be an offseason priority, which it was, when I was contacted prior to the trade being executed. Ramsey was fine that his contract wasn't addressed in connection with his trade. Disgruntled New York Jets safety Jamal Adams didn't have an issue with a delayed new deal either when the Seahawks acquired him in a 2020 trade as training camps were on the verge of opening.

Porter is in a slightly different situation than these players because 2026 is his contract year. All-Pro linebacker Roquan Smith , who was in a contract year, didn't need a new deal when the Chicago Bears dealt him to the Baltimore Ravens at 2022's trade deadline after contentious preseason negotiations didn't result in a contract extension. A new deal was done after the 2022 regular season prior to Baltimore playing in the wild card playoff round. The acquiring team could designate Porter as a franchise player next offseason if necessary to buy time on a new contract.

Painful reality

It may not be smooth sailing if Porter plays for the Steelers this season whether or not he is traded. Players who miss a significant portion of training camp or part of the regular season have some rust and/or seem to be more susceptible to soft-tissue injuries. For example, wide receiver Terry McLaurin's 2025 season was derailed by a right quadriceps injury after a contract dispute with the Washington Commanders where the team was seemingly giving his hold-in cover for awhile by putting him on PUP for part of the preseason. He was limited to 10 games last season.

ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that Porter was contemplating a second medical opinion on his back. Porter also denied last week that he had sought one. Agents usually develop a good rapport over time with a variety of doctors who can be used for second medical opinions. The second medical opinion doctors are typically more conservative in their diagnosis and recovery timetable than the team doctor. The NFL collective bargaining agreement gives players the right to follow the second medical opinion doctor's prognosis with any injury provided due consideration is given to the team doctor's recommendations.

Along those lines, Porter could be less likely to play through any minor injuries given his contract year status. Two-time NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson dealt with suspicions that missing a Ravens wild card playoff game loss with a sprained PCL in his left knee during the 2022 season was a business decision relating to his lack of long-term deal.

Safety Earl Thomas, who was selected to the 2010s All-Decade team, took a unique approach after an unsuccessful holdout in 2018 that lasted until four days before the regular season started. In an effort the minimize risk in a contract year, Thomas was willing to incur fines for not participating in practice while playing in Seahawks games. It didn't work as Thomas was sidelined four games into the season after fracturing the tibia in his left leg. Thomas was also a Mulugheta client.

There have been situations where a player cut short a season to have surgery in order to be as healthy as possible for free agency when he probably would have played through an injury with contract security. I occasionally had to help clients make that calculus as an agent. Some Bengals fans were skeptical about the severity of All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson's core muscle injury with his delayed placement on injured reserve prior to having surgery late last season.

As a former agent, I typically don't begrudge the decisions a player and his representation make in a contract year especially when there's acrimony. Teams usually have no qualms exercising their rights to the fullest extent in these instances.

The general public isn't happy when the business of football impacts their favorite team's games. Fans usually take management's side with these disputes. Players making business decisions affecting a team where what's best for the individual comes first isn't anything new. The scrutiny and attention paid to these decisions is. Regardless of Porter's status for the Browns game, there are likely to be more twists and turns relating to his situation this year.

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_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/agents-take-joey-porter-jr-s-contract-stalemate-with-steelers/)._