Joey Porter Jr. insists his idle status with the Dallas Cowboys has nothing to do with money.
Porter was not available at Indianapolis last week and left the previous game against the Cardinals early because of an ankle injury. The Cowboys have listed Porter on the injury report since he was first hurt Oct. 4. Acquired by the Cowboys from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 1, there was some question whether Porter might be repeating a tactic he deployed in Pittsburgh while angling for a long-term contract extension.
He didn’t practice throughout training camp because of a back injury, he said at the time, later admitting the lack of guarantees remaining on his contract was a factor.
“I don’t even know where that narrative come from,” Porter said. “I get it. It’s the internet, but I really don’t pay no attention to that or really care for that. My goal is to win games and play football and that’s what I want to do. So if there’s any chance I could get on the field, I’m going to get on the field and do what I do best.”
Head coach Brian Schottenheimer said Porter’s injury isn’t an excuse, adding his heel is also a problem.
“The whole foot is jacked up,” Porter said.
Porter did not practice again Thursday, and his status is up in the air for Sunday’s game against the 49ers. But he plans to get more work in at Friday’s practice and be ready to face San Francisco.
“I play a position where I got to guard the most athletic people on the field, so if I can’t run, skip, or jump, then I’m no use out there,” Porter said.
The Cowboys traded a second-round pick in the 2028 draft to the Steelers for Porter and a sixth-round pick in 2027.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Porter would be under consideration for a new contract at the time he was acquired, saying “it takes two to tango.” But after missing multiple games — he didn’t play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Oct. 8 due to illness — that conversation has been silenced.