The Joey Porter Jr. contract situation in Pittsburgh isn’t slowing down. With fewer than three weeks until the Pittsburgh Steelers open the 2026 season against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1, the two sides remain far apart on a deal, and reports from NFL Network paint a picture of a franchise keeping every option open.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday night that everything is on the table when it comes to the Steelers and Porter. Rapoport didn’t rule out a trade, didn’t rule out an extension, and didn’t rule out the possibility of Porter missing time for Pittsburgh altogether.

The new coaching staff factor

What stands out, though, is what NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported Tuesday morning. According to Garafolo, part of the reason a deal hasn’t gotten done is that the Steelers’ new brass and new coaching staff want to see Porter get on the field before committing significant money. But the issue is, Porter isn’t going to step on the field until he has a new deal, for fear of getting hurt, if nothing else. So you see the conundrum here.

The natural reaction is to wonder why seeing him play matters. The Steelers have three years of evidence, three years of in-game tape and live reps from Porter. Why would the new staff need to see more?

The truth is, this is a new scheme under a new defensive coordinator. It’s why we wondered back in February if the team would keep Jalen Ramsey. And if I had to guess, I believe Mike McCarthy, being an old-school head coach, is the one driving this. His message to Porter seems clear: I don’t know you, I’ve never been around you, and until you get on the football field and show me something, I don’t think we should be cutting a check.

It’s a stance that makes sense from McCarthy’s perspective, even if it creates an awkward standoff. He inherited a roster he didn’t build and a cornerback he didn’t draft. Wanting to evaluate Porter within the context of his own coaching staff and Graham’s scheme before locking in a long-term commitment is a reasonable position, even if the timing puts both sides in an uncomfortable spot.

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Everything remains on the table

For the longest time, the Porter contract situation stayed quiet. That’s no longer the case. Every report coming out of Pittsburgh suggests the Steelers and their young cornerback couldn’t be further apart on the financial terms of a new deal, and you even have players taking sides against the front office.

Whether it’s Porter getting on the field and proving himself to the new staff, whether it’s a trade materializing, or whether it’s Porter sitting out games into the regular season, all of those outcomes remain realistic based on everything we’ve heard and everything we understand about the situation.

It’s going to get very interesting down the stretch here as both sides work through the final weeks before the regular season.

The bottom line is this: the Steelers are in no rush, McCarthy wants to see it with his own eyes, and Porter wants to be paid. Something has to give before Pittsburgh takes the field against Atlanta, or this situation could bleed well into the 2026 season.