Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. wanted a new contract. He didn’t get one. He wanted a trade. He got one.
So now he’ll get a new contract, right?
Wrong, perhaps.
Via Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the trade of Porter from the Steelers to the Cowboys comes without a new contract.
The Cowboys inherit the $3.052 million balance of his $3.924 million base salary for 2026. They also acquire the ability to apply the franchise tag to Porter in 2027.
With the 2026 franchise tag for cornerbacks at $21.161 million and the market well above $30 million, the Cowboys could be tempted to tag Porter and kick the can.
They also could let him leave, harvest a third-round compensatory pick in 2028, and thereby offset the second-round pick they’ll be sending to the Steelers that year (and the 2027 sixth-rounder).
For both sides, the move smacked of desperation. The Cowboys are desperate to improve their defense. And the Steelers were desperate to get out of a contract impasse that had no middle ground.