After months of trying to come to terms, the Pittsburgh Steelers are ready to admit the current reality of their negotiations with Joey Porter Jr. Head coach Mike McCarthy said they are now at an “impasse” with the Steelers legacy safety.
Mike McCarthy Gets Honest About ‘Impasse’ With Joey Porter Jr.
“Every one of us has a contract. The organization, they have beliefs and so forth. That’s just kind of where we are,” said McCarthy on Monday to reporters, including ESPN’s Brooke Pryor, when faced with a question about the recent rumors concerning if the Steelers would consider trading Porter.
But before he issued that factually accurate, yet telling statement, he opened up about what’s really going on and his perspective on the matter.
“I’ve always – and I learned this in my early years as a head coach – you have to be separate the business and football. Sometimes it’s easier in others. This is a challenge for both Joey [Porter] and us because we’re a first-year staff. We’ve seen them play, compete against Joey. I would love the opportunity to coach Joey Porter. I know our defensive guys would love the opportunity. So we’re at an impasse right here and you gotta respect that.
Will the Steelers Be Forced to Trade Porter?
Just a few days before these words from McCarthy, Jordan Schultz reported that NFL teams are wondering if Porter could be available in a trade. Of course, this stems from Porter in search of a new longterm contract and the Steelers long-standing tradition of refusing to negotiate once the season kicks off. With time running out and the price going up after recent deals for other similar players, the trade conversation was inevitable.
And Porter has also been on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list since the start of training camp, granted that’s widely to believed to be a result of the contractual issue and not any actual injury to be concerned about. Because while Porter is reportedly dealing with a back injury, many have speculated that he’s just being held out until his contract situation can be figured out.
The resolution remains unclear, and maybe now cloudier than ever, as the regular season is just about three weeks away. The Steelers open the 2026 campaign by welcoming the Atlanta Falcons to Pittsburgh on Sept. 13.
However, the alleged interest from other teams is due to the type of player they know Porter to be, which is McCarthy and his staff want him apart of the fold so much, too. Porter is coming off a 2025 season in which he recorded 52 total tackles in 14 games. He also deflected 14 passes and picked off one. Porter is two years removed from his best season of his young career yet. In 2024, Porter put up a career-high 70 combined tackles, 53 credited as solo, a couple tackles for a loss, seven pass deflections and an interception. He registered 43 tackles as a rookie.
A Porter Trade Would Be Emotional for Steelers Fans
A possible trade of Porter, 26, the son of the former popular Steelers linebacker Joey Porter Sr., does come with extra emotions for fans as well. Porter Sr. made four Pro Bowls and was part of a Super Bowl winning team in Pittsburgh. Fans fudged his son would enjoy similar, if not greater, success when the Steelers brought him home by selecting him in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Penn State.
But with McCarty expressing his own frustration, everything appears to be in a constant holding pattern. So with the Steelers wanting to keep Porter, understanding the dynamics with him being the son of a franchise icon and refusing to overpay in their eyes for a player who has yet to make a Pro Bowl, one side will be forced to adjust and blink first for this saga to end.
Mike McCarthy Admits Reality of Joey Porter Jr. Situation for Steelers