The Pittsburgh Steelers’ secondary already lost one key piece and is now dealing with a second injury, this time at cornerback. Third-year cornerback Joey Porter Jr. left the game in the second half with an undisclosed injury and hasn’t returned to the lineup.
There’s no word on what type of injury Porter is dealing with, nor what level of severity it could be. After Porter left the blue medical tent, the CBS broadcast showed Porter standing on the sideline during a defensive drive for Pittsburgh without his helmet.
Earlier in the game, the Steelers lost DeShon Elliott for the game with a knee injury. The Steelers’ secondary struggled throughout the season opener against ex-Steelers QB Justin Fields, who put up over 200 yards through the air through three-and-a-half quarters of play.
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Without Porter, the Steelers turn to offseason free agent pickup Brandin Echols, a former New York Jet, in nickel sets. Echols worked on the perimeter of the defense while Jalen Ramsey bumped inside to man the slot. In base sets, Ramsey took the outside corner.
The Pittsburgh Steelers can't afford an injury to Joey Porter Jr.
Porter left the game with just one tackle in the stat sheet. As a unit, the secondary endured a poor performance, but much of Fields' success came at the expense of the Darius Slay and underneath routes between the linebackers and in the flats, so Porter doesn’t bear too much of the blame.
It’s an underwhelming start for the secondary after it added Ramsey and Juan Thornhill to the mix. Steelers fans certainly didn’t expect the Jets to have the offensive success they had throughout the season opener.
As for Porter, he's looking to continue to build on a strong first two seasons for Pittsburgh. Through his first two seasons, Porter allowed just 56.4% of passes in his coverage area to be completed while allowing just one touchdown and securing two interceptions.
We’ll continue to monitor Porter’s status as more information becomes available.