As the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare to take on the Buffalo Bills on the road in the Wild Card Round of the AFC Playoffs, one of the matchups to watch will be WR Stefon Diggs against CB Joey Porter Jr.
Porter has made a habit of shadowing opposing teams’ top receivers this season starting with DeAndre Hopkins in Week 9 against the Tennessee Titans. He asked for that matchup and performed well, so head coach Mike Tomlin has continued allowing him to follow premier wide receivers. At first, it was a play to limit his exposure to the run game with his tackling lagging behind the rest of his abilities, but it has become a necessity for the defense as of late. Especially with Patrick Peterson’s move to safety over the last few weeks, Porter’s play has been a stabilizing force for the rest of the secondary.
Porter was asked about the possibility of shadowing Diggs Monday and what it will take to limit the three-time Pro Bowler’s impact on the game.
“What I’ve been doing all season,” Porter said in a clip posted by The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo on X. “I feel like I’ve been good against these wide receiver ones throughout the year, and I’m just gonna do it again…So whoever they give me, I’m gonna do my job and lock ’em up.”
He didn’t outright confirm that his assignment will be Diggs, but Porter has shadowed Hopkins, Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Amari Cooper, and DK Metcalf over the back half of the season. That part of the game plan is unlikely to change in the playoffs.
Diggs has experienced a bit of a down season by his standards, but still caught 107 passes for 1,183 yards and eight touchdowns, a similar yardage output to George Pickens but on way more receptions. He hasn’t surpassed the 100-yard mark since Week Six and he hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 12, but he is still among the top receivers in the league as he approaches the 10,000-yard benchmark for receiving in his career. Meanwhile, Metcalf is the only opposing receiver to gain over 40 receiving yards this season while covered by Porter.
“I don’t even think of it as the biggest test in the biggest stage. I just think of it as another game,” Porter said when asked if this was like a final exam of facing a top receiver in the playoffs. “He’s definitely different, but I’m gonna look at him no different and do what I do best.”
