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It isn't just that Joey Porter is one of the most feared and finest players in today's NFL, it's also that he's one of the league's most intriguing personalities. It's with this in mind that I eagerly read Michael Silver's feature on Porter in SI's annual NFL preview issue. For the most part, the full issue is weak -- A quarter-page per team preview spent promoting "My SI?" Fifteen pages of bad fantasy info? -- but Silver continues to carve out a spot as one of my favorite football writers with a story full of A+ anecdotes such as this one about Porter and his wife, Christy...

"He showed up late for their wedding in 1999. According to Porter, his best man, Colorado State (and future Cincinnati Bengals) linebacker Adrian Ross, was being cited for parking illegally on an east Bakersfield street, and the groom-to-be bristled when the officers called for a search of Ross's tricked-out Chevy Impala. One cop ordered Porter to cross the street and keep quiet; predictably, he refused.

"Typical Bakersfield cops, doing what they do -- harassing and intimidating," Porter says. "They threw me in handcuffs for asking questions and left me in the back of the police car in 110° heat with the engine turned off. I'd pissed them off so much, they drove me all the way downtown and then let me go. We were so damn mad, we all went back to my house and started drinking." When he finally arrived at his wedding, he says, "we were drunk and almost three hours late. My wife probably thought I wasn't coming."

Now that takes guts. I mean, playing pro football is one thing, but knowingly standing up your lady on her wedding day is on a different level altogether. Move over Ronnie Lott's amputated finger, because Joey Porter's scorned woman is the new highwater mark for NFL toughness.

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• #2 Comment from fpickern 
  9/19/06 12:19 PM | Permalink

  I think mr Porter is a excellant player , and most teams would love to have him , especially the Colts right now !!  But I am on this blog to say something about the steelers coaching.   " What reasoning can you prove to your fans , why , useing you best quarterback ,when knowing he was sick , second , just had surgery???  The coaching staff lost that game , and no one else.  That was a loss , that was damn shameful, you are the world champs , the Players did no wrong , they played Pittsburg great football(DEFENSE)that is a Legacy of great  football defense , done by the best in the NFL!!!.  The ownership, and All Of the coaches need to sit down and take a quick breath together . Get your priorities together here, there is no explainable excuse , and I don't care how much he is paid ,OR how bad he wants toget out on that field, you as the head Coach , "Should of grit your teeth together , and simply said no !!!Sorry Coach , I love that team,I think you area great coach , But ,  That was your loss , not the teams!!!!!!!!!!!!  Go Pittsburg!!! Porter and Foote are the 2 best football players in the NFL!!!!!!!!!! A Florida Fan(And a state champion coach )
• #1 Comment from trry891 
  9/8/06 10:51 AM | Permalink

  No matter what team comes to pittsburg the other team gets robbed i watched the opening game on thursday night and the ref that ran with the pittsburg player down the sideline know that he steped out of bounds but yet they give him the touchdown whitch in my book is wrong,and the other thing the coach throw the challenge flag before the play ever got started but the ref just stood there