If you're a night owl, you probably caught the news that Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. had finally gotten traded. His landing spot was one of two teams rumored to be poking around the market for a cornerback, the Dallas Cowboys, so it wasn't all that surprising to see that he finally got snatched up by them.
The compensation was two picks - a 2027 6th rounder and a 2028 2nd-rounder - and the expectation of an extension with Dallas.
Of course, the other team rumored to have been in on him were the Detroit Lions. It's no secret that they desperately need help in their secondary, and specifically at CB2 next to D.J. Reed. So, yes, it might sting to see another available cornerback go elsewhere when Detroit could've been more aggressive.
But, this doesn't feel like any other miss from general manager Brad Holmes and the Lions. Porter wanted to get paid, in addition to the fact that the draft compensation in this deal - a 2nd rounder - just feels very rich for the Lions. These two factors make it so that this sort of trade was probably never likely for Detroit to execute in the first place.
Money, draft compensation make Porter miss a little more understandable
Detroit's last five 2nd round picks, for the folks at home to keep track of:
2026: EDGE Derrick Barnes
2025: G Tate Ratledge
2024: CB Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
2023: TE Sam LaPorta, S Brian Branch
So, they have hit on quite a few 2nd-rounders as of late, likely giving them pause when potentially been approached for their 2nd round pick in this package. Obviously, it's no guarantee that your picks are ever going to work out, but between Ratledge, LaPorta, and Branch, they have a great track record.
On top of that, the money was always going to be difficult to work out. Porter would've needed to come over by way of a sign-and-trade, most likely, and the Lions have yet to make any big moves to rid themselves of homegrown talent that they've rewarded with pay days. And, there's no reason to - for the most part, those players have worked out for them.
The Cowboys have 20 players set to be unrestricted free agents in 2027 and six are represented by David Mulugheta: George Pickens, Joey Porter Jr., DeMarvion Overshown, P.J. Locke, Broderick Jones, Malik Hooker.
— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) October 1, 2026
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So now, the Lions are still left with a lingering issue in their secondary. It's their biggest weakness not just defensively, but on the team overall. And, there's no Branch-caliber cornerback waiting around the corner to save them from themselves.
Does that make not taking a swing on Porter a mistake? Obviously, time will tell. As of now, though, it might be shortsighted to get worked up over missing out on his services when paying him likely meant parting with a core player elsewhere on the roster, and parting with a valuable draft pick just as Detroit's roster is going to be getting older.
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