The Steelers are now gearing up for the regular season after cutting down their roster to 53 players on Sunday. However, Pittsburgh still lacks clarity on one player heading into the season: cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
Porter missed almost the entire training camp and preseason due to a back injury he sustained on the first day of training camp. The Steelers placed Porter on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list when the injury occurred, but they took him off PUP on Sunday, so he would not have to miss four games.
Porter Should Return to Practice This Week
Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy updated Porter’s status on Tuesday when speaking to the media and believes Porter will practice this week.
“Definitely,” McCarthy said when asked if Porter will practice this week, via Steelers Now Alan Saunders. “I think Joey coming off the PUP, just like the other players, anybody that comes in here for the first time, there’s a ramp-up-type process to it and that’s what we’ll look for with Joey today.
“He’s been working with the medical people, so there’s definitely a process and there’s an understanding of what he was going through there with the injuries. There’s a process that every one of these players has gone through as far as ramping up before you go full speed on the field. So he’ll be in that category.”
Porter isn’t just dealing with an injury; he’s also looking for a new contract.
The 26-year-old cornerback is heading into the final season of his rookie contract, and he would like to have a new deal before the start of the season, but time is ticking.
Steelers Won’t Negotiate a New Deal For Porter During the Season
The Steelers do not negotiate new contracts with players and staff once the regular season officially begins. This means that Pittsburgh and Porter have less than two weeks before the first game of the season to agree on a new deal. General Manager Omar Khan spoke about this on Monday.
“We won’t talk publicly about the negotiations, but Joey knows how we feel about him, and I still hope Joey finishes his career here,” Khan said, via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. “Our policy is going to remain in place, but I’m not going to talk about negotiations.”
If the Steelers can’t reach a deal with Porter in the next few weeks, there is a good chance they will consider trading him sometime during the season. If Pittsburgh doesn’t get off to a good start, it might be wise to trade Porter by the NFL trade deadline to get something in return for him, just in case the two sides can’t reach a deal next offseason and he walks in free agency for nothing.
The Steelers will open their season against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Sept. 13 at 1 p.m. ET at Acrisure Stadium. It will be interesting to see if Porter is on the field for Pittsburgh that afternoon.
Steelers’ Mike McCarthy Gives Week-Before-Season Health Update on Joey Porter Jr.