Joey Porter Jr. finally debuted as the Dallas Cowboys’ cornerback in the Week 4 game against the Houston Texans. Since then, he has played two more games for Dallas and has defended just three passes while recording seven tackles. Yet, according to former Cowboys star safety Darren Woodson, Porter has potential that can match Deion Sanders.
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“I love the fact of how his approach to the game is. He doesn’t back down,” Woodson said in the recent episode of The Darren Woodson Show. “He’s going to press you at the line of scrimmage; he’s not playing off much, doesn’t care who you are, and he’s going to take ownership of it.
“I played with a guy in 21 in Deion Sanders, who kind of had that same pride and personality about him that I’m going to press you at the line of scrimmage and see what you got. I’m going to disrupt you, I’m going to be in your ear, I’m going to talk trash to you. And that’s the identity that I’d love to see spread throughout this football team. I’m just not sure if they have those guys right now, personnel-wise. They don’t. But he’s a good start.”
Porter certainly hoped to make his debut in Dallas as loud as possible. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to record any tackles or interceptions in the Week 4 game. With 19 coverage snaps (as per Next Gen Stats), things were a bit too quiet for the cornerback. It even raised doubts about whether Jerry Jones made the right decision by trading for Porter from the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But things started to change in the subsequent games, and Porter started to put some pressure on the opponents’ receivers. With his six-foot-two frame and 34-inch arms, Porter could jam the receivers right after the snap and wreck the timing of the route even before it started. Just like Sanders thrived in the receivers’ faces at the line of scrimmage, Porter tries to shut down one side of the field.
“I’m not sure if we can say he [Joey Porter] is going to shut down one side of the field,” Woodson went on. “But let me tell you what, there is a difference and you can see the difference in the fact that Joey Porter came in, he’s a guy that’s going to be aggressive. He plays with great technique. He has an attitude about himself and some pride about himself. And I like it. And that comes from his father. That’s just pedigree, man.”
To make things even more interesting, Porter is one of the most notorious trash-talkers in the league. That’s something he likely inherited from his father, Joey Porter Sr. Chirping in the receivers’ ears after every incomplete pass certainly drops their morale. It forces the frustrated receivers to make more errors and draw penalties. Porter Jr. has been doing that since his time at Pittsburgh, going against receivers like Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
Drawing comparisons to Deion Sanders is indeed high praise, especially with Porter being only three games into Dallas. Opposing wide receivers are in for a long second half of the season once he hits his full stride.