Steelers Have Already Completely Hurt Themselves In Negotiations With Joey Porter Jr

The Pittsburgh Steelers are in the midst of a contract negotiation with star cornerback Joey Porter Jr. He is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and he has progressed in each year of his career up until this point. He deserves to be paid top-tier cornerback money, but this is going to be an expensive extension, so naturally it is going to take some time. The Steelers have usually gotten big deals like these done after the team has already reported to Latrobe for training camp, which is probably what is going to end up happening in this situation.

Porter has continued to grow as a player throughout his first three seasons, and he is on track to become one of the more well-known, lockdown defenders in football. The highest-paid cornerback in the NFL currently makes roughly $31 million per season, and Porter might not get that much, but he deserves something close to it. This has been a hot topic of debate in Pittsburgh, as some fans want him to sign for less. Former NFL General Manager Doug Whaley appeared on 93.7 The Fan on Wednesday morning, and he was asked if the organization paying Nick Herbig $25 million per year could be affecting these negotiations.

"No doubt," Whaley said. "The Steelers did themselves no favors by doing that. I think that puts them in a corner. Because like you said, if you're saying that a backup guy who hasn't produced at a full-time rate is making $25 million, I'm definitely not taking less than that guy. Matter of fact, I need to have an increase over that 25 that reflects my starting-caliber ability, the position I play, and how important it is. Also my metrics, if you're at $25 million, I gotta start at at least $27.5 million."

The Steelers got an extension done with Herbig earlier in the offseason that was for four years, and it was worth a total of $100 million with $42 million of that being guaranteed. Herbig deserved the deal, but he is not a starter. This allows Porter to come in and say that he deserves more than a backup is making, which is a completely sound argument.

It would actually be slightly disrespectful to offer Porter anything in the range of what Herbig received. Porter has been a starter for the better part of three years, and he has proven he is one of the best in the NFL at his position. Herbig has not done that quite yet, even though he has the potential to.

Whaley continued to say that Porter's camp should be asking for $35 million, which would just be a starting number. There is no world where he gets that much, but it gives them room to negotiate. He believes the Steelers want to keep Porter under $30 million per season, while he doesn't think Porter's team will take anything less than $30 million.

Steelers' Joey Porter Jr. Is Hurt By One Area Of His Game

Porter has a ton of leverage going into negotiations with the Steelers, but there is one part of his game that might hurt him when it comes to his true value. That area is ball production. The cornerback has only picked off three passes during his career (one per season). That isn't necessarily good, even though it just reflects that most of the time, quarterbacks are not throwing the ball in his direction. He is a lockdown cornerback, which means he is not targeted a ton. That means fewer chances to make plays on the ball. The franchise certainly wants to see more ball production, and so do the fans, but he has already proven to be a high-impact player without the picks.

What do you think about Whaley's comments? Let me know on X, @brogannoey!

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