The Green Bay Packers have already made one blockbuster defensive trade in the last year. Bleacher Report believes another could be sitting there if Green Bay wants to get aggressive before Week 1.
This time, the target is Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
Porter has become one of the biggest names on the late-summer trade rumor mill as he enters the final year of his rookie contract without an extension. Green Bay has also been linked to the cornerback market, giving Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay enough reason to include the Packers among four potential landing spots.
Kay didn’t stop at naming Green Bay as a fit. He also laid out the price he believes could get a deal done.
Packers Get 2-Pick Joey Porter Jr. Trade Proposal
Kay proposed Green Bay send Pittsburgh its 2027 second- and fifth-round picks in exchange for Porter.
“The Green Bay Packers are in the market for a new corner,” Kay wrote.
Packer Report’s Easton Butler reported Aug. 21 that Green Bay had been making calls about cornerbacks around the league, with Porter, New Orleans Saints corner Kool-Aid McKinstry and Denver Broncos corner Riley Moss among the names mentioned.
Kay argued Porter would be the biggest move of the group and an immediate upgrade for a Packers secondary currently led at cornerback by Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine.
Green Bay’s unofficial depth chart released Aug. 17 listed Nixon and Valentine as the starters, with 2026 second-round pick Brandon Cisse behind Valentine. Adding Porter would give the Packers another proven outside corner to pair with safety Xavier McKinney.
Green Bay doesn’t have a 2027 first-round pick after sending its 2026 and 2027 first-rounders, along with Kenny Clark, to Dallas for Micah Parsons last August.
Kay nevertheless believes Green Bay has enough ammunition, pointing to its second-rounder and two third-round selections in 2027.
Joey Porter Jr. Trade Still Faces Major Steelers Hurdle
The proposal is one thing. Pittsburgh’s willingness to actually move Porter is another.
ESPN’s Brooke Pryor reported Aug. 24 that the Steelers and Porter are at an “impasse” in extension talks, but a source told her Pittsburgh had neither made nor received any trade calls involving the cornerback.
That report came three days after Steelers insider Mark Kaboly similarly said Pittsburgh had “zero interest” in trading Porter unless it received what he described as a “crazy offer,” suggesting two first-round picks as an example.
That is a much different price than the second- and fifth-round package proposed by Bleacher Report.
Porter’s contract situation is still worth watching. The 26-year-old is entering the final season of his rookie deal and remains on the PUP list because of a back injury. Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy acknowledged Monday that the sides had reached an impasse, while Pittsburgh’s longstanding policy of not negotiating contracts during the regular season puts a Sept. 13 deadline on talks.
Green Bay also has another potential trade piece in its own cornerback room.
ESPN’s Rob Demovsky recently identified Nixon as the Packers player most likely to be traded or released if the team makes a “high-profile move on cutdown day.” Kay floated the possibility of Nixon being included in a Porter deal instead of Green Bay relying entirely on draft picks.
For now, there is no indication Pittsburgh is ready to move Porter.
But if that changes, Green Bay has already been connected to his market, and Bleacher Report has put a price on what a deal could look like.
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