Joey Porter Jr
Joey Porter Jr
Amid the Pittsburgh Steelers’ ongoing contract saga with CB Joey Porter Jr. came a report from NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport that Porter wanted to become the NFL’s highest-paid cornerback with a new deal, whether it was with the Steelers or another team. Porter, who is still seeking a contract extension with two days to go until the Steelers’ Week 1 kickoff, denied that report according to The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo.
“I don’t really know where that came from, whoever made that up. It’s the internet.”
Joey Porter Jr. disputed reports that he wants to be the highest-paid corner.
“I don’t really know where that came from, whoever made that up. It’s the internet.”
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) September 11, 2026
The cornerback market has been reset multiple times this offseason, first briefly with extensions for Denzel Ward and then Devon Witherspoon before Christian Gonzalez became the NFL’s highest-paid cornerback this week. Gonzalez’s new deal came in with an APY of $33,750,000, and after Porter’s comments today, it’s safe to say he isn’t looking to beat that.
But just because Porter doesn’t want to become the highest-paid corner doesn’t mean that he’s going to settle for a new contract. It wouldn’t be surprising if he wanted a deal in the $30 million per year range, which would put him in the company of players including Ward, Sauce Gardner and Derek Stingley Jr.
The Steelers do not negotiate contracts in-season, so any deal for Porter would need to come within the next two days. If a contract doesn’t come, Porter’s status will be up in the air for Sunday’s season opener, and a longer holdout could become a reality. While he returned to practice last week after being activated off the PUP list, he’s been listed as a limited participant in practice the last two days with a back injury, and without a contract, Porter very well could be inactive as the Steelers begin their season.
Extending Porter has been a long, drawn-out process, and while local reporters such as Gerry Dulac have expressed optimism that a deal will get done, national reporters, including ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, haven’t shared that optimism.
The Steelers do have an offer on the table to Porter to negotiate with, so it’s not as if talks are a total impasse. Porter putting out publicly that he doesn’t want to be the highest-paid cornerback also puts some pressure on the Steelers. If Porter did want to reset the market, he could lose some goodwill from the fanbase as he simply doesn’t have the accolades or accomplishments that Witherspoon and Gonzalez do. But publicly stating that he doesn’t want to become the highest-paid corner could put the onus on the Steelers to try and get a deal done.
The next two days should be very interesting as the Steelers work with Porter and his reps to come to agreement on a new deal, and if they don’t, we’ll see if Porter decides he’s going to play this weekend or leave the Steelers shorthanded against Drake London and the Falcons.