{"id":266472,"date":"2026-08-16T16:52:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T16:52:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/266472\/"},"modified":"2026-08-16T16:52:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T16:52:13","slug":"steelers-know-joey-porter-jr-price-tag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/266472\/","title":{"rendered":"Steelers Know Joey Porter Jr. Price Tag"},"content":{"rendered":"

PITTSBURGH \u2014 The Pittsburgh Steelers have taken care of business this summer, with one notable exception. The 2023 draft class has quickly turned into one of the most successful recent ones, and now three of those draftees have inked their second contracts with the organization.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the most important player from that class and the Steelers remain far off in contract negotiations. Star cornerback Joey Porter Jr. has been out of commission with a back injury suffered at the start of training camp and he\u2019s also the last domino waiting to fall. Porter Jr. is seeking a huge deal that pays him along the lines of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the NFL, while the organization has dug their heels in on an unknown salary range.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Things keep getting more complicated after the Seattle Seahawks and Devon Witherspoon agreed to a mega-deal that guarantees him over $100 million. The Steelers were hoping that the market would stop climbing and help them get Porter Jr<\/a>. at a cheaper rate, but that hope is out the window. Now, the Steelers know that $30 million per season is the number they have to hit to finalize an extension with their top defensive back.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Why $30 Million Is the Number for Steelers and Porter Jr.<\/p>\n

The $30 million mark has long been expected to be the target Porter Jr. and his camp are seeking, but the Steelers haven’t budged in these negotiations. <\/p>\n

When these talks first started, the Steelers may have been right to refuse his ask. The market was about to explode, and the organization was understandable hesitant to be the ones to set things off. <\/p>\n

The problem is that now that concern has been realized. The cornerback market has indeed, exploded. Witherspoon just became the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history, and New England Patriots star Christian Gonzalez is next in line. Not only that, players like Cleveland Browns leader Denzel Ward also cashed in this summer. <\/p>\n

That means the price for the top corners has officially gone up, but the Steelers are still acting as if the market<\/a> is the same as when these negotiations started. <\/p>\n

\"Pittsburgh<\/p>\n

Aug 13, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (24) watches the game against the Green Bay Packers during the second half at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Porter Jr. Is Worth It<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the thing – Porter Jr. is worth the money. Yes, his potential deal will be expensive. Yes, the Steelers will be once again paying big money to a member of the 2023 draft class. <\/p>\n

But that\u2019s okay. Porter Jr. <\/a>is a top five cornerback in the entire league. That\u2019s not hyperbole or exaggeration to say that. He\u2019s been a blanket in coverage and he\u2019s still improving. <\/p>\n

Pay the man, Pittsburgh Steelers. The holdout was valiant and understandable, but it\u2019s time to pay Porter Jr. what he\u2019s worth and end this contract stalemate. <\/p>\n

Make sure to bookmark Steelers On SI,\u00a0and find our podcast All Steelers Talk on YouTube\u00a0or anywhere you listen!<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PITTSBURGH \u2014 The Pittsburgh Steelers have taken care of business this summer, with one notable exception. The 2023…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":266473,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[73,75,74],"class_list":["post-266472","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pittsburgh","tag-pittsburgh","tag-pittsburgh-headlines","tag-pittsburgh-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=266472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=266472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}