As we move through training camp and eventually to the preseason, it’s important to remember not to jump to conclusions. No, a Kenny Pickett long completion doesn’t mean he will win MVP, and one drop by receivers doesn’t mean they are in for a rough year. But you can pick up some valuable insights about individual players during this time.
For the rookies, it’s especially hard not to let their first impressions influence us. We’ve watched some of these guys in college but seeing them in Black and Gold and against real NFL competition is a lot different.
Pittsburgh’s rookie CB Joey Porter Jr is one guy everyone around the league wants to see play this preseason. Bucky Brooks, an NFL.com analyst, listed him among five rookies that he is most excited to watch this training camp and preseason cycle. You can see the full list here.
“After surprisingly dropping out of the first round on draft weekend, Porter fell right into Pittsburgh’s lap as a legacy pick following in the Steelers footsteps of his All-Pro father.” Brooks wrote. “The 6-foot-2, 193-pounder flashed shutdown corner potential at Penn State as a bump-and-run specialist in man or zone coverage. Porter’s length, toughness and tenacity will test wideouts on the perimeter while also posing a challenge to quarterbacks attempting to stack completions on easy throws in the kid’s direction. With eight-time Pro Bowler Patrick Peterson available to speak on playing the position at an elite level, the highly motivated rookie could make his mark immediately as a first-year contributor.”
It’s no secret that there are snaps up for grabs in the Steelers’ secondary this season, and that presents an opportunity for Porter. to play right away as Brooks mentioned.
Having Peterson mentoring him through his first training camp is going to be huge for the young Porter. Porter plays a physical brand of football, which fits right into the Steeler way of doing things. However, he had a bit of a bad habit in college of picking up penalties due to this physicality. Hopefully, Peterson can give him some veteran wisdom on how to be effective while avoiding penalties in the NFL.
At any rate, watching Porter will be exciting this camp and preseason. He should get a good number of snaps with the first team, potentially even alongside Peterson, and his size on the outside should give wide receivers a challenge in 2023, and hopefully for many years to come.
