Who's left for Steelers? CB Joey Porter Jr. surprisingly goes undrafted in 1st round

If the Pittsburgh Steelers really want Joey Porter Jr. to take up residence in their secondary — after he spent much of his childhood at their practice facility — they’ll have a chance to get him after all.

In an unexpected development Thursday, the Penn State redshirt junior cornerback was bypassed in the opening round of the NFL Draft. Porter was rated one of the top players at the cornerback position, but he was not among the first 31 players picked.

That bodes well for the Steelers, who hold the first pick of the second round. The Steelers also hold the No. 49 selection in the round.

Porter is no stranger to the Steelers considering his father, Joey, played most of his 13 NFL seasons with the Steelers, collecting 60 of his 98 career sacks. He also worked as the team’s outside linebackers coach from 2015-18.

Porter emerged as a first-round candidate in 2022 when he was named a second-team All-American and a first-team all-conference player in the Big Ten.

With a 4.48-second 40 time and the length NFL coaches are seeking in cornerbacks, Porter Jr. was ranked one of the top cornerbacks in his draft class.

Still, Porter watched as Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon went fifth to Seattle, but he was the only cornerback to go in the top 10. Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, also projected as a potential top-10 pick, slipped to No. 17 and New England. Gonzalez wasn’t selected until Washington, picking at No. 16, grabbed Mississippi State’s Emmanuel Forbes. The only other corner to go in the round was Maryland’s Deonte Banks at No. 24 to the New York Giants.

More on the draft

• Tim Benz: Broderick Jones is great for the Steelers. The trade to get him was even better
• Steelers NFL Draft bio in brief: Broderick Jones
• Pittsburgh Steelers 1st-round draft pick history
• If the on-the-clock Steelers traded the draft’s next pick, what could they get for it?

If the Steelers decide to look elsewhere in the secondary, they could target Alabama’s Brian Branch, a safety in college who projects to nickel corner in the NFL.

Branch is a 6-foot, 193-pound junior who in three years at Alabama totaled 27 pass breakups – getting exactly nine in each of his three seasons.

He was named a first-team All-American last season when he totaled 90 tackles, including 58 solo and 14 for a loss.

For his career, he played in 40 games and had four interceptions.

In his NFL.com draft bio, Branch is compared to Steelers free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, a three-time All-Pro.

Other highly valued cornerbacks still on the board are Miami’s Tyrique Stevenson and Kansas State’s Julius Brents. Each took top-30 visits with the Steelers.

Some of the top tight ends in the draft remain available: Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer, Oregon State’s Luke Musgrave and Georgia’s Darnell Washington.

The highest-rated defensive linemen on the board are Wisconsin’s Keeanu Benton and Georgia Tech’s Keion White. They each took official top-30 visits with the Steelers.

Although the Steelers signed a pair of interior offensive linemen in free agency and drafted tackle Broderick Jones in the first round, they could be interested in centers John Michael Schmitz of Minnesota or Wisconsin’s Joe Tippmann. Guards Steve Avila of TCU, O’Cyrus Torrence of Florida and Matthew Bergeron of Syracuse also remain undrafted.

If it’s a wide receiver the Steelers covet, they could turn to Ole Miss’ Jonathan Mingo, Michigan State’s Jayden Reed and Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt.