The Minnesota Vikings are among at least three teams hunting a trade for cornerback Joey Porter Jr. of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and perhaps their fiercest competition for his services is the NFC North Division rival Detroit Lions.
Easton Butler of Packer Report took to X on Monday night, September 14 and reported that the Vikings are “in the mix” for Porter, but that the Lions are the most likely landing spot.
“Asking Price is Two 1s. Lions front runners, Commanders after that,” Butler wrote. “Vikings in the mix too, alongside another NFC East team.”
Porter sat out the Steelers’ Week 1 win over the Atlanta Falcons with a back issue, though some analysts speculated that decision could have had more to do with his stalled contract negotiations.
Brian Flores, Vikings Could Potentially Spend Money, Capital More Effectively on Player Other Than Joey Porter Jr.
Minnesota’s defense showed in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers that it isn’t afraid to take chances, blitzing QB Jordan Love over and over all afternoon and creating big-play turnovers in the process.
However, the Vikings can mitigate some of the risk in that aggressive approach by adding an elite talent to the cornerback room. Minnesota afforded Love 373 passing yards in Week 1, and Porter is the type of lockdown defender in man coverage who can potentially erase an opposing team’s greatest threat in the pass game.
Despite that, Judd Zulgad of SKOR North predicted that Minnesota would not pursue Porter given how much he is going to cost on a new contract.
“Does Brian Flores’ scheme put enough importance on a cornerback to do that?” Zulgad asked on August 26. “Before Flores got here, I was a big cornerback guy. You know as far as like, use first-round picks on corners, don’t try to be cheap on corners, they’re too important.
“But the way that Flores schemes his defense up … I don’t know that Brian Flores puts enough importance on a corner to A) trade draft capital, especially if it’s trade capital from 2027, and 2) Joey Porter Jr. is gonna get paid,” Zulgad added. “So, like, does that make sense for what Flores does, even if Joey Porter Jr. is a really good scheme fit?”
Vikings’ QB Situation May Stand in Way of Trade for Joey Porter Jr.
Beyond the two first-round picks that Easton said Pittsburgh wants for the former No. 32 overall selection heading into his fourth professional season at the age of 26, Spotrac projects Porter’s market value at $70.3 million over a new three-year deal.
The Vikings currently have around $7 million in available 2026 cap space and could easily absorb Porter this year. The longterm investment, however, may not be worth the price tag.
Minnesota has major questions at the quarterback position, with JJ McCarthy starting the season as QB3 before Kyler Murray went down with a concussion on the third drive of his Vikings career over the weekend.
If McCarthy, the former No. 10 pick, had panned out then spending on a player like Porter could have maybe worked. But if the Vikings have to pay Murray next offseason, or return to free agency to hunt a franchise QB, the cost will be significant.
Minnesota’s other option may be to pursue a quarterback in the 2027 draft, but the prospect of that solution gets murky quite quickly if the team deals its first-rounder to Pittsburgh in exchange for a cornerback who is about to get majorly expensive.
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