Stats prove Joey Porter Jr. stretched truth about Chase and Higgins history

Joey Porter Jr.'s recent comments sparked controversy when the Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback flaunted his confidence in 'never really struggling' against Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. But as Porter continues his hold-in and is likely preparing to watch Week 3 in street clothes on the sidelines, history tells a different story.

Porter's comments felt unnecessary, and he may have just written a check his teammates will have to cash on Sunday.

“I feel like I have a good indication on those guys and what they like to do. I never really struggled against them. It’s always been fun for me getting out there with them,” Porter told the media on Thursday.

More than that, they were a fabrication of what actually went down.

Porter's overly confident remarks inspired me to do a bit of digging. I went back and charted the stats for Bengals receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in every game Porter suited up for and played in over the past three seasons during his Steelers career... and it's hard to argue that Porter and the Steelers came out on top.

Ja'Marr Chase's stats vs. Steelers when Joey Porter Jr. plays

Tee Higgins' stats vs. Steelers when Joey Porter Jr. plays

Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins combined stats vs. Steelers when Porter plays

The Pittsburgh Steelers have struggled to contain the Bengals' receiver duo with Joey Porter Jr.

Don't let Porter's comments fool you; the Steelers have not done a good job of containing Ja'Marr Chase or Tee Higgins since Porter entered the league in 2023 and was thrust into a starting role. And when you break it down further, it's even worse than the stats indicate.

Porter was healthy for all six of these regular-season matchups over the past three years—Higgins and Chase were not. Both players missed a full game each, and had they not, these numbers could have looked even more despicable.

In five games against the Steelers' defense with Porter in the secondary, Chase has recorded 39 receptions for 454 yards and three touchdowns. Per game, that's 7.8 receptions, 90.8 yards, and 0.6 touchdowns for the Bengals' All-Pro receiver.

Higgins had remarkably similar success, and he often draws Porter in this matchup.

In his five games against Porter, Higgins recorded 23 catches for 421 yards and four touchdowns. This equates to 4.6 receptions, 84.2 yards, and 0.8 touchdowns per game.

Porter hasn't lined up exclusively across from one of these two receivers. But it's clear that he either wasn't being fully transparent with his comments or he genuinely erased these matchups from his memory.

But thanks to the latest advanced analytics, we have access to even more specific data. Here's how Porter himself fared against both Chase and Higgins when shadowing each receiver, per Fantasy Points Data [$]:

Ja'Marr Chase's and Tee Higgins' stats when Joey Porter Jr. is shadowing

In five games aginst Chase and five against Higgins, Porter has allowed a combined 448 yards against these two receivers. Worse yet, Higgins is averaging 2.42 yards per route run against Porter, while Chase is managing 2.51 yards per route run when Porter is covering. Anything above 2.40 is considered very good for an NFL wide receiver, while anything 2.50 or above is considered elite.

Now, this isn't to say that Porter deserves a lion's share of the blame for the success of Chase and Higgins against the Steelers over the past three years. He doesn't. We can't soon forget how atrocious former defensive coordinator Teryl Austin's game plan was against the Bengals at times. Porter also couldn't help how the rest of the secondary performed.

However, to act like he's been a lockdown CB against this Bengals dynamic duo is simply not factual. Exhibit B: Porter's grades and penalties against the Bengals:

Joey Porter Jr.'s PFF grades and penalties in every game vs. the Bengals

To his credit, Joey Porter Jr. had an excellent game against the Bengals on November 16 last year in Week 11 of the 2025 season. However, the collection of his PFF grades against the Bengals backs up the numbers that Chase and Higgins put up on the field [$].

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that a then-40-year-old Joe Flacco was the quarterback in this game.

In fact, that's the part the Porter conveniently left out—the quarterbacks he faced when playing the Bengals during his Steelers career. Well, let's bring this to light, shall we?

Bengals quarterbacks vs. Steelers when Joey Porter Jr. plays

Yeah, I wouldn't bring that up either if I were Porter.

The fourth-year cornerback has been able to avoid playing against Joe Burrow four times in their six head-to-head regular-season matchups since 2023. Talk about some good fortune.

Furthermore, in Porter's first game against Burrow, Chase was out due to an injury. What luck! Still, Higgins went off for 140 yards and a touchdown. In Porter's only other game against the Bengals in which Joe Burrow played, Higgins and Chase combined to catch 14 of 19 targets for 149 yards and a touchdown.

Joey Porter Jr. is the furthest thing from a bad cornerback... but his comments didn't sit well with me, given how dominant Chase and Higgins have been against the Steelers over the years. He just got exposed.

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