The Dallas Cowboys agreed to acquire cornerback Joey Porter Jr. from the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 2027 sixth-round pick and a 2028 second-round pick. Dallas announced the agreement on Wednesday, September 30, and the NFL reported the draft compensation Thursday.
The move gives Dallas a 26-year-old outside cornerback at a position strained by injuries. The Cowboys entered the week 1-2, while Pittsburgh was 2-1. The transaction must still proceed through the league’s normal administrative process before Porter can be placed on the Dallas roster.
What Dallas is sending to Pittsburgh
The Cowboys are sending two future selections: their sixth-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft and a second-round pick in 2028. The official Dallas announcement said the teams had agreed to terms, while NFL.com and independent reporting supplied the specific compensation.
Porter was Pittsburgh’s first selection in the 2023 draft, taken 32nd overall after playing at Penn State. He became a regular starter during his rookie season and started 14 games in 2025.
Last season, Porter recorded 52 tackles, 14 passes defensed, one interception and one sack in 14 appearances, according to the reporting accompanying the trade. Those numbers describe his 2025 season; they should not be treated as a projection for his role in Dallas.
His 2026 availability is not yet settled
Porter missed the preseason and the Steelers’ first three regular-season games with a back issue while his contract situation remained unresolved. He has not played in a 2026 regular-season game.
Neither the Cowboys’ announcement nor the league report established exactly when he will make his Dallas debut. His health, practice participation and team evaluation will determine that, so any specific game timetable would be premature until the club issues an official status.
Why the Cowboys made the move
Dallas has been dealing with injuries in the secondary, increasing the need for an experienced boundary cornerback. Porter’s size and starting experience give the Cowboys another option, but the trade does not guarantee an immediate turnaround for a defense that has allowed explosive plays early in the season.
The draft cost is also significant. A future second-round pick is a premium asset, even when it is two drafts away. Dallas is effectively choosing a player with proven NFL starting experience over the flexibility of using or trading that selection later.
For Pittsburgh, the deal ends Porter’s absence and converts a player who had not appeared this season into two future picks. The Steelers must now redistribute snaps in their cornerback group as their schedule continues.
What comes next
The next verified checkpoints are the league transaction notice, Porter’s first Dallas practice participation report and the Cowboys’ official game-status designation. Until those are posted, claims about his immediate workload should be treated as speculation.
For more NFL context, see AskNovus’s report on Chicago’s 27-7 win over Philadelphia and the guide to the 2026 NFL overtime rules. The latest league coverage is collected on the AskNovus NFL page.
Sources
- Dallas Cowboys, trade announcement, September 30, 2026
- NFL.com, reported trade terms, October 1, 2026
- Reuters/Field Level Media, trade report, October 1, 2026
Featured image: Dave Adamson via Unsplash. The photograph is illustrative and does not show Porter, the Cowboys or the Steelers.