Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

**SanAntonioSteelerFan** · 10-20-2011, 06:16 AM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Originally posted by hawaiiansteel

Cardinals linebacker Porter silent — so far

By Scott Brown, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, October 20, 2011

The Cardinals' Joey Porter, now 34, will play Sunday against his original team for the second time since the Steelers released him.

Arizona outside linebacker Joey Porter has been quiet this week.

But, as Porter's coach pointed out Wednesday, it's early.

"I'm sure as we move through the week, the chatter will pick up," Cardinals coach and former Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt said. "Joey's a fiery, emotional player."

The Steelers are well aware of that.

Porter chattered before and during games while playing in Pittsburgh from 1999-2006. And he made as much of a name for himself calling out opponents as he did tormenting enemy quarterbacks while with the Steelers.

Porter, now 34, will play Sunday against his original team for the second time since the Steelers released him. Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward, for one, isn't expecting to encounter a more mellow Porter in Arizona.

"I'm sure he's going to try to pick up on some of the younger guys and get in their head," Ward said with a laugh. "He's not going to attack me, because what Joey says I just laugh at him."

>> Chris Kemoeatu and three other injured Steelers returned to practice Wednesday. Kemoeatu said "the plan" is for him to start at left guard Sunday after missing the past two games because of a left knee injury.

The knee has bothered Kemoeatu since before the start of training camp, and he said he has had fluid drained from it three times in the past month. Kemoeatu said he will likely need surgery after the season to have cartilage removed from the knee.

"I'm up one week and down one week," Kemoeatu said. "As far as how it feels right now, it feels 100 percent."

Along with Kemoeatu, right tackle Marcus Gilbert, running back Mewelde Moore and outside linebacker Jason Worilds practiced after missing last Sunday's game.

>> Nose tackle Chris Hoke (neck) and wide receiver Mike Wallace (hamstring) were among the Steelers who didn't practice Wednesday. Hoke is hoping to play against the Cardinals, while the Steelers are expecting Wallace to be OK for the 4:05 p.m. game.

Steelers who didn't practice yesterday and are unlikely to play against the Cardinals included nose tackle Casey Hampton (shoulder) and defensive end Aaron Smith (foot). Guard/center Doug Legursky (toe) and outside linebacker James Harrison (eye) are out for Sunday.

>> Running back Rashard Mendenhall was named AFC Player of the Week after rushing for 146 yards and a touchdown last Sunday.

>> Whisenhunt on what the Cardinals will do different against the Steelers in the teams' first meeting since Super Bowl XLIII: "Obviously if we get down to the 1-yard line, we're not going to throw it to James Harrison."

[url="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/steelers/s_762821.html#ixzz1bHqeYqBM"]http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbu ... z1bHqeYqBM[/url]

The rest of Whiz's quote, which was left off for editing purposes:

"Not that I think about that often. But, if we had gone in and scored then, even a FG, we probably would have won that game. I would have been a hero ... screw the Rooneys, it's their loss not mine that they wouldn't pick me for their head coach after Spit-chin quit. I never wanted that job anyway. Really, it's true. I can't believe Warner threw an interception there, what a loser. But honestly, I'm not bitter, I'm the kind of guy who doesn't look in the rearview mirror. (Man, one play, and my life could have turned out different ...).

**rpmpit** · 10-20-2011, 09:28 AM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

No offense to Peezy...but I honestly didn't even know he was still playing.

**pittpete** · 10-20-2011, 01:00 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

just said the same thing

**hawaiiansteel** · 10-20-2011, 03:49 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Ed: Cardinals Have Extra Incentive for This One

THURSDAY, 20 OCTOBER 2011 WRITTEN BY ED BOUCHETTE

Good morning,

I asked Ken Whisenhunt yesterday if there might not be some extra emotion on his Cardinals' side because of all the former players and coaches who have landed their after coming through the Steelers. He admitted that it was only human nature that there would be.

Here are some examples of why:

-- Joey Porter was released shortly after Mike Tomlin took office. Tomlin looked at tape and gave his approval to release Porter, who was due a $5 million salary on the final year of his contract. It began the James Harrison era. Porter, 34, starts at right outside linebacker for Arizona.

-- Russ Grimm. He believes he was told by Art Rooney that the job was his after Bill Cowher quit. He even had a part to celebrate. Later, he was told that it wasn't a done deal and then that Mike Tomlin was hired. Bitter doesn't describe it. He is the Cardinals line coach and assistant head coach, just as he was in Pittsburgh.

-- He too was among the finalist for the Steelers job and he turned down a chance for the Atlanta job because he wanted the one in Pittsburgh. But he pursued the job in Arizona because he was told that the Steelers had not yet made up their mind and, I always suspected, that someone slipped him the word that if anyone on that staff were going to succeed Cowher, it would be Grimm.

-- Kevin Spencer. Mike Tomlin kept most of Bill Cowher's staff when he came aboard in 2007. The special teams coach wasn't among them.

-- Larry Fitzgerald. He did not come through the Steelers but he came through Pitt and his personal heroics nearly sunk them in Super Bowl XLIII. That they did not will be extra incentive for a receiver who really doesn't need any.

-- Mike Miller. He's the Cardinals' offensive coordinator, a Plum native who worked for the Steelers form 1999 through 2003, when he joined Mike Mularkey's staff in Buffalo. He wanted to join Mike Tomlin's staff but there never was any interest.

Onto some stuff:

-- YOU: I see that you are leaning a little toward Ariz right now. I feel the same way. Mostly because I cannot figure out the Steelers. They can't force turnovers and they can't put teams away. However, if the Steelers cannot beat Ariz, then there is no reason to think they will beat either the Pats or the Ravens. That would leave the Steelers at 4-5, which does not bode well going forward. I don't buy all the talk of an easy late schedule. The Bengals are playing remarkably well. So are the 49ers. It might be too bold a statement, but losing Sunday and the Steelers probably don't make the playoffs.

ME: I've always cautioned about the difficulty of a schedule, especially when it's based on last season's won-lost record. In my won-lost prediction for the entire season (of which the only game I've missed so far is Baltimore), I had the Steelers losing in San Francisco. I still feel pretty good about that pick but what I don't feel good about is that I had them winning every other game to go 14-2. What was I thinking?

-- The Cardinals are coming off their bye week. Next week, the Steelers get the Patriots after their bye week. Conspiracy?

-- YOU: 28 football players died from direct football injuries in the years 2000–05 and an additional 68 died indirectly from dehydration or other examples of "non-physical" dangers, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research. jus sayin.

ME: Including Pee Wee? How many of those in the NFL? And how many in Major League Baseball? NHL? NBA? None.

-- YOU: If Hampton & Hoke can't go, does McClendon start at NT, or does Ziggy move to the NT & Cam Heyward start at LDE?

ME: Steve McClendon, although it's not a stretch what you suggest and I think that would have been possible had Aaron Smith been healthy.

-- YOU: Ben was just on Jim Rome Is Burning on ESPN2. I think Ben got a little testy when Rome stayed with a line of questioning about last year's suspension. I don't like the NEW Ben as much as I liked the OLD Ben. Nothing more humiliating than a man lying about who and what he is. He was more genuine when he was an SOB. Just venting.

ME: So far, I prefer the new Ben, and I would not assume he's pretending.

-- YOU: This week's game vs. AZ has me curious about the details behind the Steelers decision process of hiring Tomlin over Whiz/Grimm. Despite last couple of years I think Whiz is a solid coach, but I, like most Steelers fans, like the choice of Tomlin. My question is, do you know what attributes/philosophy the Steelers liked about Tomlin more so than Whiz? And curiously, the hire came down to Tomlin over Grimm. Do you know why Whiz didn't even make it down to the final 2? Interesting topic because at the time it seemed like Whiz was the natural successor to Cowher!

ME: Steelers management and ownership genuinely liked both Whisenhunt and Grimm but Grimm was their choice over those two and when Whisenhunt finally realized that, he took the job in Arizona. Grimm believed all along the job was his because, in my opinion, they led him to believe it. Now it comes down to specifics. Those close to Grimm say Art Rooney told him "Congratulations, you are the new Steelers coach" and Grimm and his friends and family celebrated. However, the Rooneys insist that he was never told that and what he was told he misinterpreted. It was a close call, with much debate. There are suspicions that NFL executives got involved to remind Dan Rooney that the rule was named after him and he had a chance to show why it was named after him, to back up his own rule. Also, Mike Tomlin blew them away in interviews and really pulled an upset because Grimm had the looks of coach-in-waiting for awhile. A Lombardi Trophy along with two AFC titles and three playoffs in four years says it was not the wrong choice.

[url="http://plus.sites.post-gazette.com/index.php/pro-sports/steelers/112648-ed-cardinals-have-extra-incentive-for-this-one"]http://plus.sites.post-gazette.com/inde ... r-this-one[/url]

**eniparadoxgma** · 10-20-2011, 06:09 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Originally posted by pittpete

just said the same thing

x3

**RuthlessBurgher** · 10-20-2011, 07:04 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

-- YOU: This week's game vs. AZ has me curious about the details behind the Steelers decision process of hiring Tomlin over Whiz/Grimm. Despite last couple of years I think Whiz is a solid coach, but I, like most Steelers fans, like the choice of Tomlin. My question is, do you know what attributes/philosophy the Steelers liked about Tomlin more so than Whiz? And curiously, the hire came down to Tomlin over Grimm. Do you know why Whiz didn't even make it down to the final 2? Interesting topic because at the time it seemed like Whiz was the natural successor to Cowher!

ME: Steelers management and ownership genuinely liked both Whisenhunt and Grimm but Grimm was their choice over those two and when Whisenhunt finally realized that, he took the job in Arizona. Grimm believed all along the job was his because, in my opinion, they led him to believe it. Now it comes down to specifics. Those close to Grimm say Art Rooney told him "Congratulations, you are the new Steelers coach" and Grimm and his friends and family celebrated. However, the Rooneys insist that he was never told that and what he was told he misinterpreted. It was a close call, with much debate. There are suspicions that NFL executives got involved to remind Dan Rooney that the rule was named after him and he had a chance to show why it was named after him, to back up his own rule. Also, Mike Tomlin blew them away in interviews and really pulled an upset because Grimm had the looks of coach-in-waiting for awhile. A Lombardi Trophy along with two AFC titles and three playoffs in four years says it was not the wrong choice.

It was probably a dumb idea for Grimm to show up WITHOUT WEARING A SUIT AND TIE for an interview for one of the most-sought after jobs on the planet.

After all, only 32 such positions exist in the world of 7 billion, and the Steeler job in particular holds more gravitas than, say, the Cardinals job. You might want to try to impress your prospective boss with a nice silk necktie, no?

**hawaiiansteel** · 10-23-2011, 03:01 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Arizona's Porter, 34, shows age

Friday, October 21, 2011
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Joey Porter remembers when he was the young linebacker for the Steelers getting ready to replace Jason Gildon. He remembers when he was a perennial Pro Bowl pick at right outside linebacker and registered 60 sacks, the fourth most in Steelers history.

Now, though, he is 34 and trying to get accustomed to a diminished role with the Arizona Cardinals, trying to accept that the skills that once made him the most-feared outside linebacker in the NFL are not what they used to be.

He will get another reminder of what used to be Sunday when he faces his former teammates.

"As you get older, your role changes," Porter said. "Being the competitor we are, you never want it to change. When I first came in, I was looking at Levon [Kirkland] and Gildon and I watched as their roles changed. Now I'm that 13-year guy.

"And, as a player, you still think you can hunt just as good as the other dog, but it just happens. You play this game long enough, you're not going to be as dominant as you used to be.

"That's hard to accept, but, at the same time, I still feel like I can play. My thing is, I'm trying to give myself the best chance to be healthy. I feel like when I'm healthy, I can still go out there and play football with anybody. But it gets tougher when you get older."

On Sunday, he will not be alone.

That is because all four starting linebackers from the Steelers' 2005 Super Bowl defense will be on the field at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Porter is the starting right outside linebacker for the struggling Cardinals (1-4), who are trying to run a 3-4 defense with former Steelers secondary coach and Dick LeBeau disciple Ray Horton. He is joined on the other side by Clark Haggans, who played eight seasons with the Steelers and partnered with Porter as the starting outside linebackers from '04 to '06

In the run to Super Bowl XL in '05, Porter and Haggans started along with inside linebackers James Farrior and Larry Foote in the Steelers defense. Farrior and Foote will start their third consecutive game together because Lawrence Timmons has moved outside to replace James Harrison.

"When I first left, it was tough, but it's been five years now," Porter said. "Year 1 might have been the hardest because I went to a 1-15 team, and that stunk. But I've been away a long time. It's not as bad as when I first left."

Porter left after the '06 season because he was no longer wanted and signed a big free-agent contract with the Miami Dolphins, where he did not have any success until his second season in South Florida.

Haggans, 34, left after the 2007 season because the Steelers wanted to get LaMarr Woodley, their No. 2 draft choice that year, on the field on a regular basis.

The Steelers thought both players were in decline back then. But, five years later, they still are starting together for the Cardinals, who have lost four games in a row.

"Last year was my first time missing lot of games, kind of battling injuries" said Porter, who has just one of the Cardinals' 11 sacks in five games. "I used to always rebound fast. The gunshot wound, I came back two to three weeks. Scopes, I'd always came back in three weeks. It was the first time they lingered through the whole year.

"Now, it's a process I have to do when I get ready for practice. I used to be a guy who went right to practice. Now, I need the hot tub. I got to do all the cold tubs and stuff like that. It's an adjustment. But, I look at it as I'm one of those guys who played that long and everybody went through it. You have to accept your role and keep going."

Then Porter added, "There's nothing else I would want to do right now."

[url="http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11294/1183687-66-0.stm#ixzz1bcpo3dE7"]http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11294/11 ... z1bcpo3dE7[/url]

**DukieBoy** · 10-23-2011, 07:27 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

And pretty silent all day, as it turns out.

**Pahn711** · 10-23-2011, 07:41 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Originally posted by DukieBoy

And pretty silent all day, as it turns out.

I think just about everyone saw that coming

**SteelAbility** · 10-23-2011, 08:06 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Kinda hard to run your mouth when you're 1-5 (now 1-6) and getting gashed for yards routinely.

**SanAntonioSteelerFan** · 10-23-2011, 09:50 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Porter AND Haggans pretty quiet, actually.

**tomiesteel10** · 10-23-2011, 10:14 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Originally posted by SanAntonioSteelerFan

Porter AND Haggans pretty quiet, actually.

yea looks like joey's best days are behind him. He was still a great player and will never be forgotten on our super bowl run

who ride we ride

**Starlifter** · 10-24-2011, 01:18 AM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

it was interesting watching the game, seeing names on jerseys for the cardinals - and thinking to myself 'i didn't know that guy was still playing.......'

**proudpittsburgher** · 10-24-2011, 02:38 PM

Re: Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Originally posted by SanAntonioSteelerFan

Porter AND Haggans pretty quiet, actually.

I actually thought the annouce crew spoke a bit higher on Haggins and his career as a Steeler than they did Peezy. I liked Clark while he was here but the more they talked about him the more I thought, "Are we thinking of the same guy?"

Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter silent — so far

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