Joey Porter Jr. won’t be the highest paid cornerback in the league when the dust settles, but any new deal that’s signed before his gets done will directly cost the Pittsburgh Steelers more money. According to SI.com’s Albert Breer, the cornerback market is poised to explode in a similar fashion to the WR and EDGE markets of the last few years.
“As the prices of edge rushers and receivers have exploded over the past two years, corner and offensive tackle (we’ll likely see Joe Alt test this in a year) have lagged a bit,” Breer wrote. “…With Trent McDuffie getting just past that, at $31 million per, after the Rams traded for him in March. It’s fair to expect that Gonzalez and Witherspoon have no reason to accept $31.1 million per year in light of all that. The question then becomes how big a jump is coming? And the dynamics at play point to Witherspoon going first, after the two faced off in the Super Bowl.
“There’s also a similarity at corner to running back in that an uptick in the market is due.”
Over the same time frame, the cornerback market’s relative increase has actually been greater than that of the wide receiver market. Patrick Surtain II reset the market in 2024 at $24 million APY, and it now sits at $31 million. That is a 29-percent increase compared to the 20.4-percent increase over the same timeframe from Justin Jefferson’s $35 million APY in 2024 to Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s $42.15 million now.
Both positions have outperformed the salary cap’s 17.9-percent increase, but corner has gained ground quicker over the last two years, though it’s fair to argue the cornerback market was lagging behind more to begin with prior to 2024.
How does this affect the Steelers? Agent Reggie Johnson reps both Devon Witherspoon and Christian Gonzalez, meaning he holds the keys to the top of the cornerback market. It’s possible he’s waiting on movement with Porter to further raise the bar for his clients, but the same could be said in reverse.
Even with fifth-year options for both Witherspoon and Gonzalez, they have to strike while the iron is hot. Too much could happen between now and next offseason, and all are threatened by the possibility of a future franchise tag lower than what they would otherwise be worth.
Could the cornerback market experience a monumental shift closer to the $40 million APY range like the receivers and pass rushers? If so, the Steelers are playing with fire not getting a competitive deal on Porter’s table as soon as humanly possible.
If Seattle or New England beat Pittsburgh to the punch, will the Steelers be priced out of the Porter market this offseason? Former agent Joel Corry recently named Porter to his list of potential franchise tag candidates next offseason, citing a potential difference of opinion on his market value.
Pittsburgh is likely motivated to get a deal done, but P-G’s top insider Gerry Dulac sowed doubt last month when he said “if” (not when) the deal gets done.
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