Last week, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie cornerback Joey Porter Jr. stated that he was hoping to shadow Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase in the Week 12 matchup at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.
Porter said “Let’s do it” when it came to a potential matchup with Chase. Credit to the Steelers for giving Porter the opportunity. He took it and ran with it.
According to Next Gen Stats, Porter had a great day against the Bengals’ star, allowing just two receptions for 36 yards on 24 routes. Porter was aligned on Chase on 85% of routes run by the Bengals wide receiver, including press coverage on 41.7% of the snaps (10 total routes).
On top of shadowing Chase, Porter rarely gave up much separation to the Bengals receiver, allowing an average of just 0.9 yards on the two targets.
Though Chase hauled in both targets against Porter, he was largely taken out of the game by the rookie cornerback. Chase had a 25-yard catch in the third quarter against Porter, and also had an 11-yard catch, but overall Porter erased him from the game.
That’s a testament to the development that Porter continues to undergo, taking on the top matchups each and every week and running with them.
When not covering Chase, Porter had some success, too. He had a key breakup on a third-down throw, coming off coverage against Chase to knock the ball away from wide Andrei Iosivas, showing off his football IQ on the play.
He’s very clearly the Steelers’ shutdown corner moving forward, the one who gets the top matchups each and every week. The fact that he keeps having as much success as he’s having in those premier matchups so early in his career is very encouraging.
