FRISCO, Texas — Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. landed in North Texas around 8 a.m. Thursday, passed his physical with the Dallas Cowboys, and went through his first practice at The Star less than a day after the Pittsburgh Steelers traded him to Dallas.
Pittsburgh sent Porter to the Cowboys on Wednesday night for a 2028 second-round pick and a 2027 sixth-round pick. Tom Pelissero first reported the deal, and NFL Network’s Jane Slater reported the terms, according to NFL.com. Dallas announced the trade Thursday morning.
Joey Porter Jr. Got The Call At A Movie Theater
Porter was sitting in a movie theater when his phone rang. He left the new Brad Pitt movie before it ended, drove home, and started calling family.
“Man, I was excited. I’m not even gonna lie,” Porter said. “I was actually at the movies when I got the call, so I had to leave the movies and went home. But I mean, I was blessed. I was excited. I called my peoples and they was excited with me. So new chapter, new beginnings, and I’m ready.”
Several Cowboys players reached out that night. Dallas tried to get him on a flight Wednesday, and the travel did not come together until early Thursday.
“Yeah, basically I got the call, and after that I was on the phone with a lot of the Cowboys guys,” Porter said. “They were trying to get me out here last night, but things didn’t happen, so we hopped on the flight early morning and now I’m here.”
Porter posted on Instagram around 5 a.m. He did not sleep before practice.
Joey Porter Jr. Leaves Sunday Decision To Cowboys Coaches
Porter has not played a regular-season snap this season. He was inactive for Pittsburgh’s first three games with a back injury, and the Steelers ruled him out Wednesday for their Thursday night game against the Cleveland Browns, hours before they traded him.
Earlier in the week, he expected to play against Cleveland. The Wednesday ruling changed that, and he said it came more from his side than from the team’s.
“Sort of, yeah, I did. Low key, I did,” Porter said. “But then I got ruled out Wednesday, so it kind of changed things. It was more on my end. I’ll say that.”
His back is feeling better, Porter said. Whether he plays Sunday at the Houston Texans is not his call.
“I’m feeling good. I’ll talk to the guys,” Porter explained. “I mean, I just got here today, so we’re just trying to take things day by day. And if everything looks good, then we should be out there.”
He would not put a percentage on it.
“I honestly couldn’t even tell you,” Porter said. “That’s for the coaches to really decide what they had planned for me.”
Houston is the last team Porter faced. The Texans beat the Steelers in the wild-card round in January, and Porter’s next game would come against a passing attack built largely the same way.
“Man, I mean, I think it really just gave me the utmost confidence because I feel like I played well last time I played them in the playoffs,” Porter said. “So now the first time I’m suiting up, hopefully suit up, it will be against them. I mean, that would be ideal. I’m pretty used to their scheme and what they want to do with 12, and I think I could be a matchup for that.”
Texans wide receiver Nico Collins, who wears No. 12, practiced fully Friday and carries no injury designation after missing Houston’s last two games with a hamstring injury, according to the Texans’ final injury report.
His family grew up cheering for Dallas, Porter said, even with his father’s 13-year career that began with eight seasons in Pittsburgh.
“My whole family has been Dallas fans our whole lives. Even my dad was a Dallas fan, my mom and everything,” Porter said. “So this ain’t the first time we’re going to have stars in the house. It was always something like that. But now that we’re actually here, they’re going to rep us pretty hard, so I’m excited about that.”
Porter, 26, has played in 47 career games with 41 starts since Pittsburgh drafted him 32nd overall out of Penn State in 2023. He is in the final season of his rookie contract.
Porter carries no injury designation into Sunday’s game. Kickoff at Reliant Stadium is set for noon CT on Fox.
