Joey Porter Jr. opens up on first OTAs with Pittsburgh Steelers

As NFL OTAs conclude ahead of the start of mini-camps in the middle of June, the newest additions to teams have had a chance to get their feet wet. Pittsburgh’s Joey Porter Jr. was one of them, though he’s already pretty familiar with the Steelers operation.

He grew up helping out at OTAs as his father suited up for the Steelers.

In his first professional workouts in Pittsburgh after being drafted No. 32 overall out of Penn State, Porter Jr. broke down how it went.

“Feeling good. It’s a rookie thing, so I have to get used to everything,” Porter said. “Everything wasn’t the best and I’ve just got to realize that and know that and carry on to mini-camp now.”

Pittsburgh is hoping Porter, the son of legendary linebacker Joey Porter, can emerge as a top-notch option in the secondary.

Porter was elite at Penn State, where he was named a second-team All-American by the AFCA, Associated Press, FWAA, Walter Camp Football Foundation and CBS Sports. He set a school record for the most pass breakups in a game when he recorded six in a game against Purdue; that also tied a Big Ten record.

In four seasons with the Nittany Lions, Porter recorded 94 tackles, 1.0 tackles for a loss, 1.0 sacks, an interception, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and 19 passes defended.

Opposing teams mostly avoided throwing Joey Porter Jr.’s way in 2021 and 2022.

Now, as he gets settled at the NFL level, Porter is trying to blend what he’s learned as a player with what he knew of the league from watching his dad growing up.

He admits there’s a certain bonus to getting to do some of the same things his dad did, especially as it is now unfolding in his first full offseason. For one, he already knows the digs where Pittsburgh will host most of its offseason activities.

He’ll be excited for the start of training camp there in late July, though he’s got a mini-camp to attend first.

“I remember it’s always on my birthday or the day before, so I used to be mad about that but now I can kind of celebrate it a little bit because I’m actually going to be the one in Latrobe, not him,” Joey Porter Jr. said. “I feel like it’s great. I used to be doing this a long time, I used to be a ball boy scrubbing the ball and watching them practice, but now I’m going to be the actual guy out there running around so I’m happy.”