Joey Porter Jr. finds himself caught amid the Pittsburgh Steelers’ tough philosophy. The franchise follows what may be tabbed as “hardline deadlines and zero in-season negotiations.” Having such a stoic attitude made Mike McCarthy’s team catch the flak. 

“I believe that the best organizations (those that truly have a chance to win championships year after year) tend to have the best processes…and also avoid making stupid rules like this one,” wrote Jake Rosenberg on X.

The cornerback heads into the final year of his rookie deal. However, the Steelers have kept his future hanging in the air. The deadline was on Sunday, August 30, to finalize the 53-man roster. Unfortunately, there was no update on Porter’s extension.

“Biggest move: The Steelers were active in the trade market on roster cut-down weekend, but the most significant move was activating cornerback Joey Porter Jr. off PUP, meaning he won’t have to miss the first four games of the season,” wrote ESPN’s Brooke Pryor.

This was good news since Porter has been sidelined because of a nagging back injury since late July. However, there was still no clarity on his contract extension. 

But why such a delay? Well, Pittsburgh has refused to abandon its longstanding policy on in-season contract negotiations.

“We won’t talk publicly about the negotiations per se, but Joey knows how we feel about him, and I still hope Joey finishes his career here,” Steelers general manager Omar Khan said on August 31. “… Our policy is going to remain in place, but I’m not going to talk about negotiations.”

The problem is that the Steelers and Porter still appear to be nowhere close to an agreement. McCarthy admitted last week that the sides had reached an impasse.

“The leaguewide belief has been that Pittsburgh hasn’t made a strong effort to get something done, which is why Porter’s name has popped up in trade rumors,” wrote NFL insider for The 33rd Team, Ari Meirov. 

Well, the frustration about the delay is justified. After getting drafted in the second round, Porter sealed a four-year, $9.61 million rookie deal featuring nearly $9 million guaranteed. In 47 appearances and 41 starts, he has recorded 165 combined tackles, 120 solo tackles, and one sack.

What hurts more is the fact that his peers, like Nick Herbig, have sealed a four-year, $100 million contract with the Steelers this offseason. At the same time, while keeping Porter on the stand-off, they restructured DK Metcalf’s contract. 

“I’m told the player has not been happy with the way things have gone because they’ve paid other players. They have not made him a formal offer to measure with his skillset. He feels like he’s been a really good corner for them.” Jeremy Fowler said on ESPN.

On top of everything, the cornerback market has been reset this offseason. Devon Witherspoon became the highest-paid corner in the league, locking a four-year, $132 million extension with the Seattle Seahawks. Meanwhile, the New England Patriots remain in negotiations with Christian Gonzalez over a contract extension.

Whether Porter ultimately reaches that level of compensation remains to be seen. Khan, however, offered a positive message about Porter’s long-term future in Pittsburgh.

“Joey knows how we feel about him, and I still hope he finishes his career here,” Khan said.

Time to see whether this assurance will be enough until they bring an extension to the table.