Even though the Pittsburgh Steelers lost Sunday’s game to the Jacksonville Jaguars, there was a small — or rather big — silver lining in the loss.
Second-round pick Joey Porter Jr. finally established himself as a starter, making the most of Levi Wallace’s injury to make a case for getting the full-time job going forward.
HC Mike Tomlin recently confirmed that Porter Jr. will continue to star for the foreseeable future, even if Wallace is able to come back.
Needless to say, Porter Jr. knows one thing or two about Steeler culture and what it means to wear that jersey.
He’s also familiar with having to take a step back and earn his stripes, as he was in that same situation when he made the transition from high school to the Penn State Nittany Lions.
That’s why he’s more than confident in his ability to do a good job, play within his role, and do whatever is asked of him to help the team win football games:
“I’ve got the highest confidence right now in myself in what I can do on the field,” Porter said. “Now that they gave me nuggets and eased me into the role, it was the best situation for me even though it stunk at the time because at the end you just want more. But I feel like they played it right and now I am ready.”
Joey Porter Jr. has "highest confidence in myself" after being named a starter. https://t.co/MgzxEpZj86
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) November 1, 2023
Notably, Porter is way ahead of schedule when compared to his old man.
His father had to wait until his sophomore year to get his first starting nod with the organization before establishing himself as one of the most consistent contributors to the team for years to come.
If he has the same work ethic as his old man and avoids injury, there’s no reason to think that he cannot become as important — if not even more — and a mainstay in the Steelers’ defensive unit.
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