The Pittsburgh Steelers will enter Sunday with some major questions regarding their defense and how they’re going to pay one guy in particular. With the hope and expectation that Joey Porter Jr. was going to be paid before the start of the season, barring something drastic happening over the next 24 hours or so, it doesn’t seem like the Steelers are going to get anything done. It’s very unfortunate that it’s gotten to this point, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to change anytime soon.
As the Steelers try to make the decisions they need to with Porter Jr., they have to consider a few factors, and one is a potential trade. I wouldn’t like to see the Steelers trade Porter, but if they’re eventually going to lose him for nothing, getting the most value for the young man should be a top priority.
Regarding some potential trades, one NFL insider recently suggested that the Dallas Cowboys should be interested in him, and it’s almost tough to ignore how much of a difference-maker he could be for the Cowboys.
"If you're not going to pay Joey Porter Jr., you've gotta trade him to the Dallas Cowboys," Jourdan Rodrigue said, per Yahoo Sports. "…My stance has been pay Joey Porter Jr. You know, Christian Gonzalez just got paid. I thought there was some eyeballing of seeing where each corner stood financially, and then maybe the contract getting resolved. I think he's one of the best corners in the NFL. I think so, I think he has such as high ceiling."
As unfortunate as that might sound, Porter’s comments from Friday make it seem like he doesn’t really have much trust in the organization getting something done at the moment. I’m very curious to see whether that actually means that the Steelers won’t sign him, but it doesn’t sound like there’s a lot of hope.
"I mean, at this point we got, what, 42 [hours]?" Porter said. "I don't know how many we got until game day, but clock's ticking, so it is what it is. At this point, we're going to be prepared. Regardless of the situation, we're going to want to play ball.
"I'm trying to be optimistic about anything and everything and all possible outcomes. ... I hope it could get done, hopefully before then, but if it happens, it happens."
If this is truly how things are going, the Cowboys could be desperate to land a player of his caliber, given the help they need on the defensive side of things, which would make them one of the more intriguing trade options around.
