As soon as the drama appears to be complete with cornerback Joey Porter Jr., it not only re-emerges but seems to come back more messy than it was previously.
On Thursday night, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac didn’t necessarily add to the drama but add more context about how we got here. Specifically, Dulac shared some details about the contract offer that Porter rejected.
The Steelers insider suggested Porter should have accepted the offer.
“In my opinion, [it] was more than a fair offer,” said Dulac on The In The Locker Room podcast. “It was not what a top-five corner would make, but it was certainly more than what your average top-10 cornerback would make.
“By that, I mean there are 11 cornerbacks in the league who average more than $20 million per year. [Porter] would have easily been in that group, but he wanted to have a three in front of his number.
“That didn’t work out. Then, you have other issues.”
Dulac didn’t get specific on those other issues, but he did mention guaranteed money was a problem. Traditionally, the Steelers don’t offer guaranteed money after the first year of contracts. The team has broken that tradition only for star players such as T.J. Watt.
Steelers Fans Get Clarity on Joey Porter Jr. Contract Dispute
Steelers Nation can take quite a bit from Dulac’s report Thursday.
Six NFL cornerbacks make at least $30 million per season. Based on Dulac’s report, the Steelers offer fell short of placing Porter in that group.
But there’s a pretty big gap between the No. 6 highest-paid cornerback ($30 million per year) and No. 7 ($25 million per season). Porter could be somewhere in that range. Really, it could be anywhere from $22-$29 million.
Fellow Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey makes $21.175 million. It seems very reasonable to believe the Steelers offered Porter more since he’s a more important piece to the team’s future.
Assuming that’s the offer’s range, deciding whether that’s a fair offer comes down to how one views Porter.
There appear to be pundits who believe Porter is a top five cornerback. Porter likely believes that himself. But there aren’t many Steelers insiders, if any, who feel that way, and the Steelers apparently don’t either.
That’s why the contract dispute has continued, and it goes beyond money. Porter could be upset that his organization doesn’t view him as an elite player at his position.
The guaranteed money issue could be equally insulting from Porter’s perspective. Perhaps he wants the special player treatment to get guaranteed money beyond the first season, as Watt and other Steelers stars have received. Pittsburgh refusing that in negotiations was a backhanded way of the team telling Porter he isn’t a superstar.
Most pundits would agree with that assessment. But again, that could be why Porter is upset and didn’t agree to the offer.
Porter Back on Injury Report
Things might be about to go from bad to worse for the Steelers with Porter.
The cornerback was set to do more at practice this week to potentially play in Week 2 versus the New England Patriots. However, Steelers insider Mark Kaboly reported Thursday afternoon Porter exited with an aggravated back injury.
On Wednesday, the Steelers listed Porter as limited for non-injury related reasons. But on Thursday, the team switched his status to limited due to his back.
Pundits have questioned for weeks whether Porter really has a back injury or if the ailment was a cover for a training camp hold-in. When Porter left practice, speculation ran wild on social media that Porter was exaggerating the injury to again have an excuse not to play without a new contract.
There’s no way to prove whether or not that’s the case. But if it is, Porter can execute this charade all season, still get paid and accrue a year toward his contract to become a free agent in March.
The Steelers have ways they can still create leverage in the situation too. Mainly, they can franchise tag Porter and prevent him from becoming a free agent.
But the fact it could get to that point speaks to the mess the Steelers-Porter situation has become.
There are likely to be many more updates on it from Dulac and others over the coming weeks and potentially even months.
Steelers Insider Provides Details on Rejected Joey Porter Jr. Contract Offer