Penn State Top 25 players of 2022: Joey Porter Jr.
Penn State’s roster for the 2022 season has a good mix of returning veterans and experience and fresh new faces expected to jump in and contribute this fall. Nittany Lions Wire will be taking a look at 25 of the most important players on the roster for the 2022 season all throughout the month of July by profiling one player each day.
James Franklin has built a complete team at Penn State, not many programs can say that. What he and his staff do best is develop talent, yeah it is fun to get 5-star recruits but they get coached the same as walk-ons. Thanks to that approach we have seen a major influx of talent to the NFL and across the entire roster.
One major project that has proven to be more than just his father’s name is Joey Porter Jr. What he has turned into is a complete corner who can help in many coverages and he has the big frame of his famous NFL father. All of that combined has Penn State with a special corner roving the field for the Nittany Lions.
2021 in Review
(AP Photo/Barry Reeger)
Joey Porter Jr. had a breakout 2021 campaign after a shortened 2020 season. In his first full year in a Nittany Lion uniform, we saw Porter Jr. start 13 games including a bowl appearance. He was a major key in the pass defense that was helped out by another great group of pass rushers headlined by [autotag]Arnold Ebiketie[/autotag].
Penn State overall had the 23rd best pass defense in the country and allowed fewer than ten yards per completion. Allowing fewer than ten yards per completion is something that only three teams in the entire country can lay claim to.
Joey Porter Jr. was a major part of those numbers being what they were. Now, when you watched him play he was able to lock down receivers in man coverage while pressing them while also dropping back in a zone and making plays. When you dig even deeper into the analytics side of things PFF gave him a tackling grade of 74.7 and a pass coverage grade of 70.8, both of which are very impressive numbers for a corner.
Overall, he saw his national value rise, his draft stock rise, and showed Penn State is more than just a pass rush based defense.
Biggest question for 2022
Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
I think when you look at Joey Porter Jr. he has two things to prove when you look at his ability as a whole. One being was last year the start of something or was it a flash in the pan? Two, can he bounce back from poor showing against the cream of the crop in the Big Ten?
Addressing that first part, he has the physical traits to be a dominant corner. What he needs to do though is decide what type of corner he wants to be and if he wants to be a dual-threat then he must put in the work. He has shown he can do well pressing receivers and staying with them for the most part in coverage. That being said, his ball skills need to improve. This Penn State defense needs to generate turnovers and Porter Jr. could be huge in that department.
Now for that performance against the stiffer competition, the elite receivers in the conference were not kind to him. His worst games came against Ohio State and Maryland, both of their star receivers have gone nowhere. Ohio State still has the two-headed monster of Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Marvin Harrison Jr., they are no easy day’s work. The same goes for Maryland with Rakim Jarrett and Dontay Demus, as shutting them all down will make or break the season for the Nittany Lions.
2022 will be a success if...
Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
This is a simple one to answer. If Joey Porter Jr. can become a lockdown corner and takeaway each team’s best receiver then the projection of this team changes. As things stand right now they haven’t shown that they can contain some of these more explosive offenses in the conference.
Half of the season PFF had his coverage grade in the more than favorable direction, against Ohio State, Maryland, and even Michigan State it dropped 50%. He needs to find consistency in his game and he needs to do it starting in week one. This simple point alone will make his season and the entire defense’s season a success.
2022 will be a disappointment if...
Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
If Joey Porter Jr. and this defense can’t find a way to contain these growing, explosive offenses in the conference then this team won’t sniff a meaningful bowl, let alone anything else.
Porter Jr. has shown he can be a physical corner in both coverage and in the run game. He needs to continue his expansion of his skillset as well as providing an overall boost to the defense. So many of the team’s defensive leaders left, now is the time for him to grab that leadership role and run with it. If he doesn’t, fans better hope and pray someone else arrives that isn’t on anyone’s radar right now.
Realistic outlook for 2022
Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
What I think is a fair and realistic expectation for the young corner out of Alleghany County is simple, I think we see continued growth. Seeing growth around his pass coverage I think is going to be something we see whether it is the easy way or the hard way. If the guys from Ohio State and Maryland beat him up again then he will know for sure what he needs to make a priority.
If he gets beat up or if he handles them well, we will all know where he thrives in terms of role while also knowing what he is. I think this defense with [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] will do well to continue to grow and they also will move back to focusing on their defensive back play. Porter Jr. could be a star in Diaz’s defense but ultimately time will tell.
Top 25 Penn State Players in 2022
