In the Pittsburgh Steelers preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, rookie first-round pick Joey Porter Jr. secured his first interception. After the game, he broke down what happened on that play.
As Porter Jr. explained, the interception largely came down to his coaches noticing something on film and following their direction.
“I was talking to my coach right before I went out on that series,” Joey Porter Jr. said. “He was talking about getting our hands on our receivers in Cover-2. He’s like, ‘Once you get your hands on him, push him out of bounds and look for the ball, because it’s gonna be there.’ And exactly like that, it happened.”
You can check out the interception, here:
Lined up against Khalil Shakir , Joey Porter Jr. had an easy time rerouting the wide receiver. Just like it was anticipated, the pass was heading for Shakir and it became an easy interception for the rookie.
For Porter Jr., this was a special moment. His father won a Super Bowl while playing on the Steelers defense. After his retirement, he spent several seasons as a coach in Pittsburgh too. So, it was great that the two were able to celebrate his first interception together, with Porter Jr. making sure his dad got the ball afterward.
Even though it was a preseason game, there’s no way that Joey Porter Jr. forgets that moment, regardless of how long and successful his NFL career becomes.
Patrick Peterson on mentoring Joey Porter Jr.
One of the benefits of being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers was that it gave Joey Porter Jr. a mentor in the veteran Patrick Peterson. Recently, Peterson opened up about mentoring the young defensive back.
“No doubt about it and that’s the Steeler way,” Peterson said. “For me, being the people person that I am, I just fell right into it. I want to see the next generation be successful. I want to see the guy behind me become better as well because you never know when we might need him.”
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