The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Joey Porter, Jr. 32nd overall in the 2023 NFL draft. The Steelers also drafted another corner in last year’s draft, Cory Trice, Jr. out of Purdue. And, for some reason, Pittsburgh Steelers fans have forgotten about him.
Corey Trice, Jr.
Cory Trice, Jr. played in five seasons for the Boilermakers. In two of those five seasons, he played in fewer than two games. After redshirting his first year, he played a full season. Then during his redshirt sophomore season, he was off and on battling injuries. Looking for a great redshirt junior season, he started off hot but tore his ACL in the second game. Trice came back in 2022 and proved he still could play and appeared in all 13 games.
Trice was regarded as a mid-round pick after his great career at Purdue. He could have been a day-two pick but was injury-prone, which dropped his draft stock. The Purdue corner was known for his length and size, standing at 6’3, 206 pounds. When Trice fell into the seventh round the Pittsburgh Steelers picked him with 241 picks.
He was considered a steal in the draft, and it seemed like the Steelers had struck gold if he could stay healthy. Unfortunately, during training camp, Trice broke his leg and would miss his entire rookie season. He came in as the fifth corner on the depth chart and was going to have a shot at a starting spot.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2023
The Steelers had an eventful 2023 season. During the preseason, they looked like one of the best teams in the NFL, but during the regular season, they had one of the worst offenses in the NFL. The Steelers rallied late in the season to get to a 10-7 record and make the playoffs. They went on to lose to the Bills in the Wild Card game, 31-17.
One spot the Pittsburgh Steelers struggled the most was their secondary. The Steelers looked like they would have an okay secondary in 2023 led by Minkah Fitzpatrick, but it was very disappointing. Newly-acquired Patrick Peterson looked like he took a massive step back and couldn’t keep up with receivers. All along, they were struggling with injuries at the safety position. Luckily, rookie Joey Porter, Jr. looks like a future star and is already the Pittsburgh Steelers’ number one corner.
During the 2024 offseason, the Steelers have started to rebuild the secondary. They cut players like Patrick Peterson and Keanu Neal, and also let players go in free agency in Levi Wallace, Chandon Sullivan, and James Pierre. That basically only left Joey Porter, Jr. and Minkah Fitzpatrick in the secondary. Pittsburgh then made a trade for cornerback Donte Jackson. Jackson is a veteran corner who should be great opposite Porter, Jr.
This works out perfectly for Cory Trice. Pending any more corner adds from Pittsburgh, Trice should be the third corner on the depth chart. Hopefully, Trice can stay healthy, learn from Jackson, and be another star on the Steelers’ defense. Another scenario could be that Trice goes a different route and moves to safety. With his large size and cover skills he could be successful at the safety position.
I look forward to seeing what 2024 holds for Cory Trice Jr. If you are looking for more content on the Pittsburgh Steelers follow me on X @ChaseGrimm28. If you are looking just for NFL and college football content check out more from Gridiron Heroics.