Tag: Joey Porter Jr.

Is it time to hit the panic button on Joey Porter Jr.?

As Joey Porter Jr. continues to shows signs of regression after a strong rookie year with the Steelers, is it time to panic?

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr., the Steelers’ second-year cornerback from Penn State, entered his rookie season in 2023 with high expectations and ultimately earned the respect of both his peers and fans. However, his second NFL season has been disappointing, to say the least.

Through nine games in the 2024 season, Porter has allowed 26 receptions for 365 yards and a quarterback passer rating of 94.5. At this rate, he is on pace to allow 689 yards by the season’s end. This marks a noticeable decline from his 2023 rookie season, where he allowed just 25 receptions for 385 yards and a QB passer rating of 68.8 over 17 games.

Though Porter has shown inconsistency throughout the season, his worst performance came in Week 10 against the Washington Commanders. He allowed 131 yards on six receptions, which accounted for 71% of Washington’s 182 total receiving yards.

Pittsburgh may need to evaluate its options moving forward, perhaps by giving Porter additional practice reps or placing a safety over him during man-coverage plays, as the Steelers defense need to keep his inefficiency under control heading into a difficult second half stretch of the 2024 season.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Steelers-Commanders matchups to watch: Joey Porter Jr. vs Terry McLaurin

CB Joey Porter Jr. faces WR Terry McLaurin in a key Week 10 positional matchup as the Steelers take on the Commanders in a pivotal showdown.

One of the premier matchups heading into the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 10 contest versus the Commanders is none other than Pittsburgh’s young shutdown CB Joey Porter Jr., taking on Washington’s elite WR Terry McLaurin.

JPJ has had an up-and-down start to the 2024 season, to say the least. Through eight games, Porter Jr. has allowed 20 receptions on 32 targets. According to PFF, he is also allowing 11.7 yards per reception, which ranks 75th out of 205 eligible cornerbacks. However, in his past two performances, JPJ has allowed an impressively small 25 yards combined in Weeks 7 and 8 against strong wide receiver units.

‘Scary’ Terry appears to be on the verge of a breakout 2024 campaign, hauling in six touchdowns, which is tied for the second-most in the NFL, and 598 receiving yards on 42 receptions. With an average of 14.2 yards per reception, McLaurin looks to be a major threat in Week 10’s contest.

Can the second-year CB lock down McLaurin in Week 10? Or will McLaurin exploit Porter Jr.’s over-reliance on physicality?

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Two-years ago today, Chase Claypool became Joey Porter Jr.

Today, November 1st, 2024, marks the two-year anniversary of the heist of the century: trading away Chase Claypool to the Chicago Bears.

Two years ago today is a day for celebration, as not only did Pittsburgh pull off one of the greatest one-sided trades in Steelers’ history, but they secured the future of the franchise. I am, of course, referencing the Chase Claypool-Chicago Bears trade that took place on November 1st, 2022.

The Bears traded away their second-round draft pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, the 32nd overall pick, for Claypool. The stars aligned perfectly for Pittsburgh in this draft, as the Miami Dolphins were forced to surrender their first-round pick, allowing Pittsburgh to make the first selection on Day 2 of the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Steelers would then select their current starting cornerback, Joey Porter Jr., who has thus far proved himself to be the future of the Pittsburgh secondary.

Claypool would quickly be traded off the Chicago Bears, ending up in Miami and signing with the Bills in the 2024 offseason. Claypool was once again released, while JPJ has developed into one of the league’s premier shut-down corners.

Pittsburgh fans once again hope Steelers’ GM Omar Khan pull off another blockbuster trade, just a few days away from the trade deadline in 2024.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Cameron Heyward, Joey Porter Jr. share glowing reactions to Steelers’ MNF uniforms

Steelers players, including Cameron Heyward and Joey Porter Jr., are excited about wearing the color rush unis vs. the Giants on MNF.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are breaking out their color rush uniforms a little early this year — much to the delight of the players who have the honor of wearing them.

The Steelers last wore their color rush in a Dec. 7 Thursday Night Football matchup with the New England Patriots.

As the longest-tenured Steeler, Cameron Heyward is most familiar with the energy wearing the alternate jersey can bring.

“It’s a different jersey,” Heyward told Teresa Varley of Steelers.com. “I like to think we win more than we lose in them. We usually do it for a night game, and it provides an intensity and a rush, no pun intended. It’s a good time to show off some cool jerseys.”

Heyward’s right; the Steelers do win more than they lose in the color rush, as they boast a 7-3 record.

“It gets the fans going,” Heyward continued. “It looks like a black hole when you see the black and gold. Everybody has their old-school jerseys, but it’s nice to bring something new school to the party.”

It’ll be Joey Porter Jr.’s second time wearing the beloved monochromatic look, but he’s seen plenty of it — especially with his famous Steelers dad — over the years.

“I have seen so many great players wearing that jersey,” said Porter. “I like how the yellow pops on the block numbers. I have always been a fan of the block numbers. The fact that they put a spin on that for color rush, I love it. It always looks clean. I get excited for color rush.

“It’s an overall good uniform that I hope we bring back more often. Every time we play in them, I am happy.”

The Steelers have worn their color rush twice annually in some seasons, others just once.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Steelers matchups to watch: Week 2 (DEN) – Joey Porter Jr. vs. Courtland Sutton

Joey Porter vs Courtland Sutton will be the premier matchup on defense for the Steelers this week.

One of the bright spots from Pittsburgh’s Week 1 win was none other than their second-year corner, Joey Porter Jr., locking down Atlanta’s number one receiver, Drake London.  Week 2 will also require an elite shutdown performance, with this matchup focusing on how JPJ can limit the production of the Denver Broncos’ top receiver, Courtland Sutton.

Courtland Sutton had a quiet Week 1 performance against the Seattle Seahawks, walking away with 12 targets from Bo Nix, catching 4 of these for a measly 38 yards.  This may be attributed to having rookie throwing the football in his first NFL start, but Sutton will need some of his greatest separation skills to alleviate the pressure off of Nix.

Speaking of pressure, the human pressure cooker himself, Joey Porter Jr., will look to put Courtland Sutton to the test in Week 2.  JPJ plays with elite physicality, and creating separation will not come easy.  The Steelers’ second-year corner can make elite wide receivers disappear and will look to do so in Denver.

Joey Porter Jr. and Courtland Sutton will be a fun matchup to watch this Sunday, with physicality guaranteed on almost every route run.  The Pittsburgh Steelers will need this matchup to go in their favor as they hope to move to 2-0 on September 15th, 4:25 pm EST, in Denver.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Joey Porter Jr. mocks Drake London after a lockdown performance

Joey Porter Jr. picked up right where he left off last season as the Steelers top coverage player.

Fans were once again treated to another elite performance from the Porter family name.  Drake London, wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons, was supposedly due for a massive breakout year after the acquisition of free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins.  It’s fair to say that 2nd year Pittsburgh Steelers’ cornerback, Joey Porter Jr., clearly didn’t get the memo.

Joey Porter Jr. dominated Atlanta’s number one wide receiver on the field and is now in the trash-talking department as well.  If you asked JPJ, he would tell you it’s not trash talk; it’s a fact. He told Steelers reporter Dale Lolley to “check the statline” and that Drake London “did a little warm-up today.”  This is exactly the type of attitude you want out of a lockdown corner.

https://twitter.com/SteelViper45/status/1833210529529401707?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

This week Porter and the Steelers head to Denver to take on the Broncos. Porter will surely be matched up against Courtland Sutton for much of the game as he’s Denver’s top target.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Wide receiver linked to Steelers is ‘waiting on’ Joey Porter Jr.

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said Courtland Sutton is waiting on the prime matchup with cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

There’s a particular wide receiver who was linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the offseason that Mike Tomlin says is “waiting on” the prime matchup with Joey Porter Jr.

After praising Porter’s performance versus Atlanta Falcons’ Drake London, Tomlin had this to say about his next opponent, Denver Broncos’ Courtland Sutton:

I’m sure there’s a gentleman named Courtland Sutton that’s waiting on him in Denver. That’s the battle of playing corner in this league, but again he loves it, and I’m glad that he does.

Just as Porter craves the matchup with top wideouts, they crave the challenge of going up against lockdown corners, and Porter has been just that for the Steelers.

In Atlanta on Sunday, Kirk Cousins shied away from Porter, and for good reason — his coverage was outstanding. In the lone Porter target, he allowed a seven-yard catch but was right on top of him, so London was taken down immediately for no YAC.

Sutton, a once-thought Steelers target after sending Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers, had four receptions for 38 yards in Denver’s 26-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

2 Steelers defenders named to All-Breakout team

Keeanu Benton and Joey Porter Jr. both made Bucky Brooks’ All-Breakout team.

Looking over the Pittsburgh Steelers roster, there are several young players who we are expecting huge things from in the upcoming season. Two of those young players made the cut on NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks All-Breakout team.

Brooks listed defensive tackle Keeanu Benton and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. as defenders on his squad. Benton and Porter were both second-round picks for the Steelers in the 2023 NFL draft.

Porter came on stronger as a rookie and finished as one of the best young cornerbacks in the league. Benton saw more limited reps and while he didn’t light up the boxscore, his skills are evident, and he could rack up the numbers in a full-time role.

If the Steelers are going to be successful, it will mean both of these players improve over last season. Porter has a chance to ascend to a truly elite coverage player. For Benton, it is more about maximizing his reps. The Steelers use a heavy rotation of players up front so Benton needs as many winning reps as possible, especially on passing downs.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

CB Donte Jackson brings elite man coverage skills to Steelers defense

Donte Jackson graded out as one of the top man defenders in the NFL last season.

There’s an old adage in the NFL about leaving cornerbacks “on an island” meaning they lock in on a single wide receiver in man coverage. It’s what every team wants from their top corners and it helps make the rest of the defense better when you don’t have to commit extra defenders into coverage.

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted one such cornerback last season in Joey Porter Jr. By the time Porter was ready to enter the starting lineup, he was confident he wanted the opposing team’s best receiver.

Now this offseason, the Steelers added Donte Jackson via a trade with the Carolina Panthers which gives them a player who can lock down the other side of the field as well.

Pro Football Focus ranked the five highest-graded cornerbacks in man coverage and Jackson checked in a No. 5 with an 81.4. The only cornerbacks ahead of Jackson were Sauce Gardner, Trent McDuffie, Jamel Dean and Tariq Woolen. For the sake of comparison, Jackson’s overall coverage grade was only 66.6 which really illustrates where his strength lies in man coverage.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Steelers signing CB Cam Sutton after domestic violence arrest

The Steelers sign cornerback amidst domestic violence case

The Pittsburgh Steelers are adding a familiar face to their secondary, signing free agent cornerback Cameron Sutton to a one-year contract for the veteran minimum.

Sutton was drafted by the Steelers in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and had a career-high three interceptions in 2022 before signing a three-year, $33 million deal with the Detroit Lions ahead of the 2023 campaign. He will now be joining a cornerback room that is youthful in its talent. Joey Porter Jr, Cory Trice, and Darius Rush are all entering their second seasons in the league, while Beanie Bishop is a rookie. Donte Jackson and Anthony Averett are the two most established veterans on the team.

That said, the current focus won’t be on Sutton as a player or scheme fit because of the trouble he got in earlier this year. The Lions released Sutton earlier this offseason after he turned himself into police following a warrant being issued for his arrest for alleged involvement in a domestic violence case where he was accused of hitting and choking his girlfriend to the point of unconsciousness. The warrant initially charged Sutton with a felony, but he was formally charged with misdemeanor battery. It goes without say that such an act is disgusting, it’s indefensible, and will all but certainly cause Sutton to face suspension by the NFL.

So, once again, we are in that weird spot where we can point out that Sutton fills a need for the Steelers and gives them an established nickel cornerback that has been successful in this defense before and unquestionably makes them better. But the other very relevant questions not related to football will be, and should be asked. Anytime someone is accused of domestic violence, those questions of ‘Is this a good idea?’ or ‘Should the team really be doing this and can they trust this guy?’ will rightfully be asked, and the Steelers can’t run from them.