DETROIT – Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Joey Porter wasn’t exactly getting into the spirit of the day.
Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald
It was Super Bowl XL’s Media Day Tuesday at Ford Field, the media’s major crack at interviews with players, head coaches, assistant coaches, owners and even equipment managers if they chose.
Porter had long been a target of the press, ever since he suggested that the NFL wanted the Indianapolis Colts to beat his Steelers in the playoffs, which, he said, was the reason for several questionable calls favorable to the Colts down the stretch.
So, naturally, the media swarmed Porter, hoping and praying that he’d come through with some nugget of verbal controversy.
This time, Porter didn’t bite.
In the hour-long session, Porter set his own rules. He’d answer a question exactly once. It didn’t matter if the questioner had been elsewhere, interviewing another Steeler, before he came to Porter. He’d answer once. Even if the subject was the Seahawk he would have to go through to flag down Shaun Alexander Sunday, tackle Walter Jones.
“I’m not going to answer the same question over and over and over about Walter Jones, Walter Jones, Walter Jones, Walter Jones,” he said. “There’s only so many times I can say that he’s a good tackle.”
Another reporter came up to Porter’s booth and asked about Jones. Porter, 6-foot-3, 250 pounds, glared.
“You weren’t here, were you?” he snarled. “We already talked about that.
“He’s not over there hollering about how great I am, so I’m not going to sit up here and holler about how great he is all day. How many times can I say it: he’s one of the best tackles in the game. How many ways do you want me to say it?”
He wouldn’t answer what reporters wanted to know most: Jones, the time he had surgery for a gunshot wound in 2003, his sack dance and his outburst in Indianapolis.
“I can tell when y’all are fishing for something,” he said. “I’m not going to be the bait.”
Reporters have long known that some athletes bear Media Day better than others. Seahawks Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander are gracious, at least, even if they rarely say something even remotely interesting. It’s the same with Steelers Jerome Bettis and Ben Roethlisberger. Both head coaches, Bill Cowher of the Steelers and Mike Holmgren of Seattle, are gems.
It’s not an ideal situation – in fact, it’s a bit of a circus – but considering the sheer number of media members, it’s the best solution.
Five busloads’ worth of press left the media center at 9 a.m. for the Steelers’ session. A like number left at noon for the Seahawks session at 1 p.m.
For some absurd reason, the buses were escorted by, at various times, seven police cars, lights flashing and sirens blaring. They led them north on Interstate 375 to Ford Field, blocking off onramps and street traffic along the way to the 65,000-seat stadium. At one point, a trucker traveling the opposite way madly honked his horn, apparently believing the media might be the Steelers, the Seahawks or President Bush.
The trip took about 10 minutes.
Once there, the media were herded, in a manner seen in many Western movies, through a parking garage, where security personnel searched their bags, cameras and, in some cases, bodies.
Once inside Ford Field, the mob could only wait until exactly 10 a.m., or about 25 minutes.
So mix an impatient throng with athletes who’d rather be anywhere else, and the result is not surprising.
Porter was asked how he was holding up under the media queries.
“They’re killin’ me, man,” he said. “They want to talk about everything but football.”
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