6 NFL Teams That Should Trade for Steelers' Joey Porter Jr.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have long been one of the best-run organizations in the NFL. But even the most professional teams aren't immune to drama—and the Steelers have some in the secondary right now.

After three seasons and 41 starts for the Steelers, cornerback Joey Porter wants a second contract that makes him one of the highest-paid players at his position in the league. The Steelers aren't in any hurry to give him one, and given the team's policy against negotiating deals once the season starts and the reported gulf between what Porter wants and what the Steelers offered, things have gotten acrimonious—to the point that trade speculation has gathered steam of late.

It wouldn't be an easy deal to pull off. In addition to that new contract for Porter, the Steelers are going to want substantial compensation in a trade—potentially a first-round pick.

But any time a young player just entering his prime who has played a premium position at a high level becomes available, there will be no shortage of teams who make sense as trade partners—some more than others.

It might seem a little odd to include the Kansas City Chiefs as a trade partner for Joey Porter Jr. After all, just this past offseason the team dealt Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams rather than pay him elite money at the position—just the sort of money that Porter is likely seeking.

But life comes at you fast in the NFL—and circumstances in Kansas City have changed.

After trading McDuffie, the Chiefs traded up in April's draft to acquire LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane. Delane logged an interception in his professional debut, but he also suffered a shoulder injury in the game. That injury isn't believed to be serious, but Delane has struggled to stay on the field for Kansas City—he missed time over the summer with a hairline fracture of his scapula.

There's also the matter of Kansas City's circumstances as a team.

There was more than a little uncertainty surrounding the Chiefs entering the season after last year's disappointing campaign. But if the Week 1 drubbing of the rival Broncos is any indication, the Chiefs are ready to get right back in the mix in the AFC.

When Kansas City dealt McDuffie, general manager Brett Veach may have been looking as much toward the future as he was living in the now. But now that the Chiefs have shown that the future is now, one of the NFL's more aggressive general managers may be willing to take a swing at improving the weak spot of the defense.

Whether the Washington Commanders make a play for Porter essentially comes down to one thing—do the Commanders really believe they can contend in the NFC East this year?

If the answer to that question is yes, than an argument can pretty easily be made for acquiring Porter—as Eric Edholm wrote at Yahoo , the team could certainly use the help at the position.

"If you watched the Week 1 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles, you likely saw a few coverage busts from Mike Sainristil on the outside," he said. "He's a better fit inside, and acquiring Porter would allow that move to happen. The Commanders say they still like 2025 second-round pick Trey Amos, but he has practiced in full just once since Nov. 9 last year, so his ongoing injury concerns keep him a risky-at-best fallback option. Their supple salary cap situation probably makes a Porter trade financially viable, too, even if they're earmarking a lot of money for Jayden Daniels' future extension."

Last year, the Commanders fielded the fifth-worst pass defense in the NFL, allowing 242.5 yards per game. The team's starting trio at cornerback is Sainristil, journeyman veteran rasul Douglas and Amik Robertson. Amos started this season the same place he ended the last one—on injured reserve.

With over $27 million in cap space per Over the Cap , Washington has the wiggle room to extend Porter. And a trade for him may well Washington's last best chance to bolster a secondary that could be their undoing (again) in 2026.

The New York Giants got a big win in Week 1 over the Dallas Cowboys, but the team still has significant questions on defense—especially at the cornerback position.

And after the G-Men restructured the contract of safety Jevon Holland to create cap space, Giants insider Dan Duggan speculated on the NYG411 podcast that the Giants may had a reason for freeing up that scratch.

"This is like the Brian Windhorst meme, where the Giants restructured Jevon Holland's contract to clear $6 million in cap space. Why would you just clear $6 million in cap space randomly? Joey Porter's base salary, he's on a rookie deal, is $3.9 million," Duggan said. "Listen, after Week 1 would be a random time for a trade. Except for the fact that you're dealing with a guy who is unhappy with his contract, didn't play in the opener with a 'back injury. I can't sit here and rule it out."

There's no question that a healthy Porter would be a sizable upgrade over Deonte Banks and Greg Newsome at cornerback. And given the talent that the Giants have in the front seven, an argument can be made that a Giants team that was the 28th in the NFL in total defense last year would have a defense as good as any in the division on paper with Porter in the fold.

Combine that with all the young talent the Giants have on offense, and you could be talking about a legitimate playoff contender.

The Dallas Cowboys spent big in terms of both money and draft capital in the offseason in an effort to overhaul a defense that was among the league's worst in 2025. It has only been one week, but the team's performance on that side of the ball against the New York Giants can't have made Jerry Jones happy.

It's no secret that Jones isn't at all shy about making aggressive moves—and as ESPN's Jeremy Fowler wrote, the Cowboys and Steelers have done no shortage of wheeling and dealing of late.

"Dallas has been looking for cornerback help, though more so in the bargain bin to this point," he said. "The franchise has trade-market rapport with Pittsburgh GM Omar Khan. The sides have reached deals in back-to-back offseasons, as Dallas traded for wide receiver George Pickens in May 2025 and offensive tackle Broderick Jones on Aug. 29. Dallas did not discuss Porter with Pittsburgh at the time of the Jones trade. But that would be an easy call for the Cowboys to make if interested."

The Cowboys could certainly use the help—the team's current starters (DaRon Bland and Cobie Durant) didn't fare well in Week 1. But there's an issue here—compensation. Dallas owes the higher of their two first-rounders next year to the New York Jets after the Quinnen Williams deal, and Pittsburgh already has Dallas' third-rounder next year.

Still, Jones has never let details get in the way of making a splash, and the Cowboys have the wiggle room under the cap to make a trade financially feasible.

To be clear, when asked by reporters about the potential for the Lions to pull off a trade for Joey Porter, Detroit head coach Dan Campbell poured cold water on the idea.

"I don't see that. I would say this, though: It gives us options. Whether that be our own guys or--it just gives us flexibility," Campbell said. "There's a lot that can happen."

Of course, there have been at least a couple instances in NFL history where teams have said one thing and then done the opposite. It's shocking, but true. And in the opinion of Ernesto Cova of Detroit Jock City , Detroit needs to reconsider taking a run at acquiring Porter.

"The Lions don't have a true press-man coverage specialist," he said. "Porter Jr. is strong and knows how to hold his own in space, even when his guy manages to create separation. He'd immediately be this team's CB1. Porter Jr. is a sturdy and physical player, and with the NFC North's plethora of playmaking wideouts, the Lions can't afford to double down on a CB corps that has shown time and time again that it's not good enough. How will they hold up against Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III, Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, Jordan Addison, Jauan Jennings, or Justin Jefferson? They just can't."

Simply put, Detroit's cornerbacks have been roasted so far this season. Josh Allen having success against the Lions defense is one thing. Giving up over 400 passing yards to Tyler Shough of the Saints is another.

Detroit isn't sniffing the Super Bowl the way this defense is playing.

So Detroit can either take steps or let things get away from them.

Again, this is a notion that has already been shot down by some pundits in the Windy City. Longtime beat writer Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune wrote that he just can't see the Bears ponying up the compensation it would take to pry Porter away from the Steelers.

"I can't imagine the Bears would want to pay the high level of compensation required to acquire Porter if the Steelers trade him," Biggs said. "They could always find a way to make the salary cap work if they really wanted to, but I'd be surprised if Porter was traded for less than a first-round draft pick. There are questions at cornerback when you look to the future for the Bears. But there are more pressing needs on the defensive line."

However, if the Bears truly think they are legitimate Super Bowl contenders in 2026, that late first-rounder might be worth sending to the Steel City if it helps fortify Chicago's defense.

Because that defense is going to be the Bears' undoing this year.

Offensively, the Bears looked like a juggernaut last week in Carolina—over 550 yards of offense and 59 points. But Chicago's defense was all but non-existent—Carolina piled up over 475 yards of offense and over 350 yards through the air.

Biggs is spot-on that the Bears have issues up front. But the issues at cornerback appear to be every bit as pressing. Winning shootouts every week is a recipe to make the postseason and then get bounced when the level of competition goes up.

And if Chicago gets cooked again this week by Carson Wentz and the Vikings, general manager Ryan Poles needs to pick up the phone and call Omar Khan.