The Pittsburgh Steelers and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. have been in a standoff all summer, and with the 2026 season looming, their odds of finding a middle ground just got worse.
Early Tuesday morning, the New England Patriots and Christian Gonzalez agreed on a record-setting, four-year, $135 million deal that will pay the star cornerback $33.75 million in average new money. Gonzalez topped three-time Pro Bowler Devon Witherspoon as the top-billed cornerback in the NFL.
For the Steelers, this made a sticky situation even worse. Porter's hold-in continues as the team prepares for their Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. Unfortunately, the Gonzalez deal will only deepen the strife between Porter and the Steelers.
While fans would urge general manager Omar Khan to pay up and satisfy his top cornerback with a record-setting deal, the Steelers, historically, have not valued the cornerback position this highly. And without seeing Porter in so much as a single practice rep in Patrick Graham's defense, making him the league's highest-paid CB would be a massive gamble.
At this point, there's only one thing left to do: the Steelers must hold their ground and exercise their control over Porter's future with the team.
The Pittsburgh Steelers must play hardball with Joey Porter Jr.
Let me be clear: trading Porter is on the table if the Steelers wish to explore it. There are a few teams that would likely be willing to give Pittsburgh a second-round pick while turning around to make Porter the highest-paid cornerback in the league.
But if the Steelers want to keep their most valuable player in the secondary, they need to exercise their control of the situation now more than ever.
Porter is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is scheduled to make $3.924 million in base salary this year, per Over the Cap. These are game checks that won't come his way if he doesn't suit up (and it's chump change compared to what he's seeking). But the Steelers can threaten two years of franchise tags after 2026 if Porter doesn't cooperate.
However, this creates a problem. Though Porter's cap number would be cheaper on a franchise tag next year—even a double-franchise tag in 2028—his agency could get a doctor to examine Porter and claim that he has an injury that's keeping him off the field.
This is what happened with Micah Parsons last year before he forced his way out the door via trade. And Porter's agent, Andre Odom, is part of David Mulugheta's agency at Athletes First—the same agency that helped Parsons land a record-breaking deal.
So, in short, even though the Steelers technically have three years of control over Porter, his agent could look for loopholes. If they choose to go down that route, the Steelers could look to trade him at that point.
But Khan should call their bluff.
Though Porter may be able to find a way to collect paychecks while watching from the sidelines, the last thing he's going to want to do is miss the next two or three seasons in a seemingly endless holdout. By doing so, Porter would tank his value while only getting older and becoming less desirable to earn a massive multi-year deal with $100-plus million in guaranteed money.
This situation was already ugly, and after Gonzalez's deal, it could get worse. But the Steelers cannot cave to Porter's contract demands. They technically still have three years of control over the cornerback they drafted in 2023, and they should intend to use them.
Add us as a preferred source on Google