All through the pre-draft process, the Pittsburgh Steelers were linked to Penn State cornerback Joey Porter Jr. for obvious reasons. The black and gold had their highest pick in years at No. 17, and Porter was considered a top-three cornerback by many. After trading up to select Broderick Jones with the 14th pick, those hopes and dreams seemed to be unlikely. Then, he somehow fell out of the first round, and the rest is history.
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After the Steelers took Broderick Jones with the 14th overall pick, the chances of Joey Porter Jr. landing in Pittsburgh seemed very slim.
The front office received several calls for the 32nd pick, but Porter was too good to pass up. Of course, his father, Joey Sr., played the first eight seasons of his career in Pittsburgh. He was quite the player too, racking up three Pro Bowl appearances and becoming a fan favorite in the process. Teresa Varley of Steelers.com gathered some quotes from the Porter family after the 2023 NFL Draft, including Porter Sr.
"I wanted it to be the Steelers so bad for him. But they did such a good job of not letting us know. I have over 50 friends in that building that know me personally and I got nothing from anybody to say, 'Man, be ready, it's coming,' or anything. We wanted it. Trust me, that's what we wanted. But we just didn't feel like we could say for sure that's what it was going to be," Porter Sr. said via Varley.
While Porter Sr. went on to play three seasons in Miami and two seasons in Arizona, he'll always be most remembered for his tenure with the Steelers. After his playing career, he got into coaching. He eventually landed with the team in 2014 as a defensive assistant under Dick LeBeau. Just a year later, Porter became the outside linebackers coach, a position that he would retain for four years before being fired in 2019.
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Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Joey Porter Sr. spent five years as a member of the staff in Pittsburgh, including four years as the OLB coach.
In other words, the roots are deep with the Porter family. Joey Porter Jr. and Mike Tomlin's son, Dino, played together in high school. This has been a moment that has been percolating for months now, and it's got to be surreal for Porter Sr. to see his son get drafted by the same team he was drafted by. Porter Jr. will have huge expectations in his rookie campaign in 2023, as the cornerback room needed a young, talented guy like him.
Will Porter Jr. start for the Steelers immediately?
Thankfully for him, he'll have the perfect mentor in Patrick Peterson alongside him. While the 12-year vet will bring quality to the secondary, his off-the-field value may be just as crucial for the Steelers. If you were wondering, Porter Jr. is tied-for-ninth in terms of the odds in winning Defensive Rookie of the Year, including three cornerbacks ahead of him. If you haven't seen, Porter Jr. already has plenty of motivation to prove people wrong in 2023 and beyond.
How do you think Porter Jr. will do in his first NFL season in 2023? How good of an NFL player do you think he will become? What are your favorite memories of Porter Sr. in a Steeler uniform? Do you think he can win DROY? Share your thoughts in the comment section below, as well as on our social media sites, yinz!
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