NFL player comparisons for Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr.
By Tommy Jaggi
While not every fan agreed that Joey Porter Jr. should have been a strong candidate with the 17th overall pick that the Pittsburgh Steelers originally held, I didn't hear anyone complaining when Omar Khan snatched him up at pick 32 in the 2023 NFL Draft. Porter is cut from a rare cloth at the cornerback position in terms of his height and length.
Every year at this time, one of my favorite things to do is spend time researching and finding good NFL player comparisons for each Steelers draft pick. Porter's unusual physical makeup means that there aren't a ton of NFL cornerbacks who share his body type or freakish wingspan. However, there are some comparisons that make sense.
In my post-draft scouting report, I concluded that Porter is a physical boundary cornerback who needs to be less grabby at the top of routes and improve his ball skills. If he can do these things, he could be one of the better cornerbacks in the league. If not, his floor could be an underwhelming CB who is a fringe starter. Here are my high-end, low-end, and most likely NFL player comparisons for Joey Porter Jr.
High-end NFL comparison: Ike Taylor
Fans will oftentimes remember the bad with Ike Taylor. His hands were awful and he botched plenty of opportunities to take the ball away. However, he really was a very good player with an outstanding 12-year career in the NFL. This may seem like a lazy player comp, but in terms of skill set and play style, Joey Porter Jr. compares favorably to Taylor.
Taylor was a player who could get beat on one play, but have the confidence on the next to come up with a big pass breakup on third down. He used his length to body up bigger receivers and his confidence is through the roof.
While 14 interceptions in 12 seasons is certainly less than ideal, Porter had just 1 pick in four seasons at Penn State, and there's no reason to expect that he should compare to a cornerback who takes the ball away much more often.
Ike Taylor was a former fourth-round pick way back in 2003, but the Pittsburgh Steelers would argue that he was worth a first-round pick. We can only hope that Porter can have a comparably long career as the team's number one cornerback. I think becoming very similar to Ike is close to a best-case scenario.