The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering their bye week after a very hard fought game against the division rival Baltimore Ravens, and with some of the injuries the team has, it comes at a great time. Sitting at the top of the AFC North at 3-2 with two wins against divisional opponents is a great spot to be in currently.
Jared Wickerham / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers OLB Alex Highsmith sacks Lamar Jackson and forces a fumble during a win against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 5 of 2023.
Getting the win in Week 5 against the Ravens was huge, as the Steelers were coming off of an atrocious performance against the Houston Texans in Week 4 and have had struggles on offense all season. These struggles have had Steeler Nation calling for the team to relieve Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada of his duties, and justifiably so.
Those offensive struggles continued against the Ravens, as the offense failed yet again to top 300 total yards and are still stuck in the mud on the ground failing to top the 100-yard mark. The defense continued to play lights out, as they forced three turnovers, which all came in very clutch moments throughout the game. Even the special teams came in clutch with a blocked punt that resulted in a safety.
Steelers Rookie Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. Makes His Biggest Play Of The Young Season
One of those big moments was an incredibly clutch interception by Steelers rookie cornerback Joey Porter Jr. The interception took place after yet another atrocious play by Gunner Olszewski when he fumbled on a punt return which gave the Ravens the ball deep in Steelers territory. Olszewski said he has a "little gift" for Porter Jr. after he saved his butt.
The Ravens looked to pick on the rookie Porter Jr. by throwing a fade into the end zone from the 3-yard line to Odell Beckham Jr., but Porter Jr. had other plans.
Steelers.com
Steelers Joey Porter Jr. picks off the Ravens Lamar Jackson, beating Odell Beckham Jr. to the ball.
It was a very poorly thrown ball by Lamar Jackson as it did not have the necessary height or distance to get over Porter Jr., and was one of the lone moments where Jackson threw a poor ball while his pass catchers wasted several greatly thrown balls by him with ugly drops.
Speaking with the media following the win, Patrick Peterson put a ton of emphasis on Porter Jr.'s exceptional performance and talked about how plays like that are exactly why he was chosen by the Steelers in the second round this past April. Below is his response to being asked if he thought the Ravens would attempt to challenge Porter Jr.
"Oh for sure, for sure he's a rookie. You have to expect that once a veteran quarterback like Lamar sees a young corner come back into the game with his veteran receiver [Beckham]. Like we tell Joey all the time, he's so tall and long on the outside as a corner, it's going to be hard for teams to complete those type of passes on him, especially down in the red zone like that. That's why we got him, that's why we drafted him, and everything is finally starting to come together for him. I can just tell that the game is starting to slow down for him."
It is very common around the NFL for teams to want to test their opponent's young defensive backs, especially ones who had some knocks on them coming out of college like Porter Jr. did being known as a "handsy" player. Well Porter Jr. has brought all the answers for those tests, as he has been the Steelers best cover corner so far this season, albeit in limited reps.
Having opposing veteran quarterbacks test him is something Porter Jr. expected however, especially with veteran wide receivers lined up across from him. He also spoke on it after the game, as well as talked about what it meant for his interception to happen in such a big moment, in such a big rivalry.
"Oh yeah, you know like I always say, I'm the rookie out there against Odell Beckham on a third-down. So I already kind of had that in the back of my mind that they're going to try me on this play."
Porter Jr. being more comfortable within the defense and slowly earning more reps can go a long way to the long term success of the Steelers this season as a whole. In each of their wins, the Steelers defense has carried them to victory throughout the continued struggles by the offense, but in the losses, the secondary has been the weakest link. So if Porter Jr. can help that group step up, then it will alleviate a lot of pressure off of some of the other position groups.
Jared Wickerham / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr. getting the home crowd hype at Acrisure Stadium in Week 5 of 2023 against the Baltimore Ravens.
Everyone expected for the team to select Porter Jr. in the 2023 NFL Draft, and even the players knew there was a chance he'd end up wearing the Black & Gold. His ability to make plays like the one he mad this past Sunday is exactly why they got him, just like Peterson said.
Let us know below what you think about Porter Jr.'s ability to help the defense this season!
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