Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr., Dad Share Magical Moment after Interception
PITTSBURGH —Â Outside the Steelers locker room, an emotional Joey Porter Sr. had tears in his eyes, exclaiming about his son’s first career interception. It was an emotional journey for the former Steelers outside linebacker. Still, his son gets to put his stamp on the iconic AFC North rivalry with the interception of Lamar Jackson that helped Pittsburgh spring the game back in their favor.
Porter saw the fade coming to him against Odell Beckham Jr. That’s someone he watched growing up, and it put where he was now in his NFL career into perspective. The team threw Porter into the game following halftime. Following that, he rotated into base with Levi Wallace and Patrick Peterson.
“I’m the rookie out there against Odell Beckham on a third down,” Porter said. “I already had that in the back of my mind that they were going to try and go after me on that play. I was just excited. Happy to make a play for this team in a crucial moment of the game. I just really put myself into the Steelers-Ravens rivalry.”
It’s the first introduction of the younger Porter into the rivalry. His dad saw many of those games. It made his emotions in the postgame even more vivid. Joey Porter Jr. gave his dad the ball for the first interception he ever made in the NFL against the Buffalo Bills in the preseason. But his first regular season interception is going home with Porter Jr. On the field, he gave it to Mike Tomlin, who told him to go get the interception this week.
A special moment 🖤💛 @JoeyPorterJr pic.twitter.com/PQ3fWYPbi3
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 19, 2023
On the season, teams have targeted Porter eight times on 63 snaps. He has allowed just one reception, allowing a passer rating of 27.6, the lowest among rookie cornerbacks. Pittsburgh had him as one of the best cornerbacks in the draft. They turned the Chase Claypool trade into that. A Steelers legacy has a different tone to set in a rivalry such as Steelers-Ravens.
“I’ve been working since I got to the Steelers,” Porter said. “It’s never always great, but I feel like I’m getting to a spot where I’m getting good now. I just have to keep working.”
Even Lamar Jackson had to give his props to Porter Jr. The play turned out to be a game-changing play. Wide receiver Gunner Olszewski claimed that Porter was getting a gift following the interception. Meanwhile, Jackson and the Ravens feel like they gave the game away.
“I was just trying to get my boy [Odell Beckham Jr.] a shot,” Jackson said. “We’ve just got to get in sync – that’s all. [Joey Porter Jr.] made a great play [and] made a great interception. We didn’t want it to happen, but it happened.”
It will be a night of high emotions for the Porters. Now, it seems that he has cracked the starting lineup as well. The young rookie will be integral to the success of the Steelers secondary moving forward.
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