Classic Joey Porter Words to Live By

"You're not supposed to go into a game like this and act like you like the other team, anyway."

Joey Porter said those words about the Seattle Seahawks the week before the Super Bowl in February 2006.

Porter had kept a low profile until that point but erupted after he learned that Seattle tight end Jerramy Stevens had mouthed off about the Seahawks planning to spoil Jerome Bettis's Detroit homecoming and appearance in the first Super Bowl of his long and distinguished career.

Upon hearing Stevens's remarks, Porter could contain himself no longer. He erupted, calling Stevens "soft."

Porter went on: "I don't think he should even be talking about a guy of Jerome's status. This is a guy who hasn't done nothing yet.

"If they ever leave him in to pass block, he's definitely a liability. If they want him to play to my side, him being the tight end, to block me, he's a liability. If they do anything using him to make a play coming to my side, it's not going to work, I'll tell you that right now. If they run the ball with him trying to block me, it's not going to happen. If they leave him in to pass block against me, I'm going to hit their quarterback. Those are the facts."

What do we have in Markus Wheaton?

Markus Levont`e Wheaton, the 2013 third-round draft pick out of Oregon State, is being counted on to replace Emmanuel Sanders at the No. 2 wide receiver this year on the Steelers.

Sanders set a fairly low bar for performance. His drops came at crucial times -- remember the dropped two-point conversion on Thanksgiving night vs. Baltimore? ... the nail-in-the-coffin loss when he choked repeatedly, dropping several passes, as noted the next day on this blog:

"Sanders topped his first-quarter drop of a long pass right on the numbers by failing to catch another long pass right on the numbers, with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter and looking stupid doing it. Then, Sanders bungled the two-point conversion that would have tied the game. 

If the definition of "clutch" is to thrive and get better in the bigger moments, Sanders ain't clutch."

Emmanuel Sanders, in Baltimore

Points reiterated over at Behind the Steel Curtain:

"Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders choked throughout the game, dropping several passes, including a two-point conversion with a minute and change left on the clock that would have tied the game."

For all his shortcomings, Sanders was slippery, showed some flash on occasion and came up with enough catches to end up with 67 receptions in 2013 for a pedestrian 11-yards-per catch average (740 yards), a long catch of 55 yards for a TD, six touchdowns, 12 catches of 20 yards or more, three catches of 40 yards-plus. He had 10 kick returns for a very decent 28.6 yard average, with the longest return being 46 yards.

Sanders is gone, now, of course, having departed via free agency for the Denver Broncos. No surprise. As Scott Brown at ESPN noted before the last game of the 2013 season, "Sanders' well-documented drops have raised questions about his consistency, and his high opinion of his skills will price him out of the Steelers' range if another team agrees with him."

In 2014, with Sanders gone and with Dri Archer returning kicks, all Markus Wheaton has to do is catch passes. Will he be able to replace Sanders's production? Very possibly.

Let's take a closer comparative look.  Sanders and Wheaton have similar size. According to the official team numbers, Sanders was listed at 5'11, 180. Wheaton is listed at 5'11, 182. Subtract an inch and about 10 pounds, and you're probably close their real height and weight.

Sanders was a third-rounder out of Southern Methodist in 2010 (82nd overall). Joey Porter's Pit Bulls remember watching pre-draft video of some of his play at SMU and being impressed. He seemed polished, and he had put up numbers in a pass-happy offense. His speed was plenty good enough (4.40 40).

Wheaton was a third-rounder out of Oregon State in 2013 (79th overall). He came out of a pass-happy offense at Oregon State. He also put up good numbers, and his speed (a 4.45 40) is good enough to have success in the NFL. At Oregon State, Wheaton caught 227 passes for 2,994 yards and 16 touchdowns. That's college, though.

When he got to training camp with the Steelers last year, by all accounts, Wheaton looked very good. He showed polish and a professional approach to the game. During training camp last August, Ike Taylor famously said that Wheaton was already a better wide receiver than Mike Wallace -- just not as fast as Wallace.

Taylor also said of Wheaton:

"He's not playing like a rookie, he doesn't act like a rookie," Taylor said. "Of course, he's going to make rookie mistakes because he is a rookie, but watching him over the course of weeks, the guy is smart, polished. I can't wait to see him during the season."

That didn't happen much, mostly due to a broken finger that curtailed Wheaton's playing time and production.

This year, for all intents and purposes, the Steelers are adding a third-round wider receiver ... just one that was drafted a year ago. One plus is that he has a year being around the Steelers, studying and working with the coaches and other receivers.

Now healthy again, presumably, the questions for Markus Wheaton in 2014 are: Will he get open? And will he catch the ball?

To find the answers, we can go back to look at some of the things that got people excited last training camp. A nice report from Behind the Steel Curtain's Neal Coolong, offered at this link, pores over details of some plays he made at Oregon State, and they show a workmanlike approach and attention to detail that bodes well for success at the pro level. Doing it against UCLA is one thing, of course; doing it against the Ravens is another.

So, back to our original question: What do we have in Markus Wheaton?

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls would like to believe we have reason to be cautiously-hopefully optimistic that Wheaton is a guy who will do well enough to make us forget the high hopes we once had for Emmanuel Sanders, and his disappointing drops, as well.

Wheaton is neither Emmanuel Sanders nor Mike Wallace, and we'll take that as a potentially good thing.

The Cleveland Browns Suck

The Browns suck and are a rolling clown car of a franchise.

Here's how the 2014 season will shake out: Early excitement, as Browns' fans love Johnny Manziel, and he enjoys sporadic flashes of success while generally having trouble adjusting to the speed and complexity of the NFL game. Cleveland struggles on offense. Manziel lasts five games before head coach Mike Pettine turns to Brian Hoyer. Hoyer sucks, too, and the Browns do little on offense.

Owner Jimmy Haslam gets called before a grand jury. Manziel goes to Vegas and signs with MTV as the star of his own reality show. On defense, the Browns' corners turn out to be not all they're cracked up to be. Manziel is reinstated as the starting quarterback. Cleveland finishes 4-12.

During the off-season, Haslam announces that Pettine has been fired, along with general manager Ray Farmer, and that Manziel has been traded to the Toronto Bills, who immediately name him the starting quarterback for the 2015 season opener vs. the London Jaguars.

Cleveland fans cry.

Funeral Mass for Chuck Noll Today at St. Paul Cathedral

To be carried off one last time. 

Funeral Mass at 10 a.m., at St. Paul Cathedral in Oakland.  
May he rest in peace. 

Click the writers' names below for links
to some good articles about Chuck Noll ...

Jerry Dipaola

Alan Robinson

Dejean Kovacevic

Rest in Peace, Chuck Noll

Surely the scene in heaven tonight: The Chief and the Emperor, reunited.
"Welcome, Chuck. We've been waiting for you."

Read more about the great Chuck Noll here

Steelers Depot: Chuck Noll milestones

Steelers Depot: Chuck Noll Links

Today's Joey Porter Quote

What the Steelers have been missing the past few years.

The following quote is from Joey Porter, Feb. 2, 2006, in a media session a few days before the Steelers took on the Seahawks in the Super Bowl in Detroit, as reported by the Post-Gazette:

"We're going to go out there and play football our style. It's going to be very physical. We're going to try to tap out as many people as we can; put it like that. We're going to try to send as many people to the sideline as we can. That's all you need to know. Every chance we get a chance to tap somebody out, that's what we're going out there to do." 

Asked to explain "tap out," Porter said, "Tap out, make them quit, send them to the sidelines. You never seen the word 'tap out' before? 'Take me out of the game.' You see somebody tap on their helmet, they don't want it anymore. We're going to try to make every one of them tap out if we can."

It's a good thing for Jonathan Dwyer's sake that he is no longer with the Steelers. Joey Porter would not put up with him, or anybody else, tapping out.  You've been warned, rookies. Welcome back, Joey Porter.

It's All About the Quarterback

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls have long wondered why the Steelers don't run more no-huddle offense. For that matter, we have long believed the Steelers should let Ben Reothlisberger call his own plays. Ben seems to be at his improvisational best when he can wing it, so turn him loose. Granted, the running backs might get fewer than 10 carries a game, the offensive line may disintegrate, and Todd Haley may go bald and apoplectic, but what's the worst that can happen? Well, besides that?

Surely Todd Haley knows by now that when he calls plays through the headset that he might as well be ordering a pizza, for all the attention Ben pays to his play calls.

Ben seems more settled now that he's a father, and he seems to be more of a leader, too, at least so far as embracing the role of a leadership persona. Who knows? Turn him loose.

What did the Steelers see in Jarvis Jones?

Last year, his first in the NFL, rookie linebacker Jarvis Jones accomplished little and showed less.

It makes you wonder what the Steelers saw in him. They didn't meet with him at the NFL Combine, and when his Pro Day came up at the University of Georgia, he ran an abysmal 4.92 40-yard dash. Still, the Steelers made him their No. 1 draft pick (No. 17 overall).

Jarvis Jones, No. 95

Last year, Jones showed basically one pass-rush move. He couldn't bull-rush many blockers. He didn't hold the edge consistently on run plays, and he had trouble shedding blocks. He struggles with outside contain. He's not especially strong. And he's slow.

Seriously, what did the Steelers see in this guy? Last year, Jarvis Jones showed so little he might as well have been Landry Jones.

Let's hope he's better this year. To be fair, the Steelers' defense is notoriously difficult for rookies to learn. He says the game has slowed for him now that has a full NFL season under his belt, and we hope so. Steeler Nation is counting on him, although today's depth chart lists nondescript veteran backup Chris Carter as the starter at left outside linebacker, with Jones as the backup to Jason Worilds on the right side.

Most people expect Jones will be handed a starting job, much like Mike Adams was handed the starting left tackle job last summer.  A first-rounder should be making an impact by the time his second year starts. Let's hope Jones justifies the investment the Steelers have made in him.

We hope he succeeds, but if he falls flat this year, well, it makes you wonder what the Steelers were thinking when they drafted him instead of a couple of other players still on the board.

Eric Reid, rookie Pro Bowler, drafted No. 18 overall
in 2013, one pick after Jarvis Jones

LSU safety Eric Reid went to San Francisco with the very next pick (No. 17 overall), and Reid made the Pro Bowl his rookie season. Reid had 77 tackles, 11 breakups, four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Jones was in on 40 tackles and one sack.

Two picks after Reid, the Bears selected guard Kyle Long, and he went to the Pro Bowl. Tight end Tyler Eiffert was on the board, too, and he went to Cincinnati with pick No. 21.

Considering Reid went to the Pro Bowl, however, and was selected immediately after Jones ... well, if Jarvis Jones doesn't pick up his game early this season, Steeler Nation may be clamoring for Howard Jones at linebacker instead of Jarvis Jones.

NFL teams cannot miss on No. 1 draft choices. It's too soon to put the "bust" label on Jones, but the pressure will be on him this year.

It may be early, but it's later than you might think.

The Bengals take a step back this year?

On the one hand, it's a team that's had a taste of success and should be hungry for more.

On the other hand, the Cincinnati Bengals carry the weight of a crushing history of ignominious failure when it counts.

On the one hand, the Bengals have drafted extremely well, uncharacteristically so, for the past five years.  A.J. Green, Giovanni Bernard, Geno Atkins, etc. and this year, high hopes for Darqueze Dennard and others, no doubt.

On the other hand, all those other number one draft choices in the secondary -- six of 'em (Dennard, Leon Hall, Adam Jones, Terence Newman, Dre Kirkpatrick, Reggie Nelson; not all drafted by the Bengals) -- those guys haven't played up to expectations.

There were enough question marks about Hall, Jones, Newman and Kirkpatrick (all corners) that the Bengals invested yet another No. 1 in Dennard. And, honestly, Joey Porter's Pit Bulls weren't sold on Dennard at No. 15 for the Steelers; it could be that he is a half-step too slow and that his clutch-and-grab tricks won't fly in the NFL.

Shaky Quarterback?

On the one hand, the Bengals have Andy Dalton.

On the other hand, they have Andy Dalton. 

The fourth-year quarterback (entering his contract year without an extension) has performed well in the regular season. Miserably in three playoff appearances. Last year, he took 29 sacks, lost three fumbles and threw 20 interceptions. There is room for improvement, and he knows it. Everybody knows it.

Two New Coordinators

We were initially inclined to look at the two new coordinators as a minus, but Hue Jackson actually may do some good for the Bengals. Dalton threw an unseemly 586 times last year. If Jackson can whittle that number down by about 180 passes, Dalton may reduce his mistakes and the Bengals may increase their time of possession, which would help the defense -- if they actually commit to the run, as Jackson said they will.

Then again, do you really expect the Bengals to be anything but a finesse team? It's in their franchise DNA. 

The departure of Mike Zimmer as defensive coordinator is likely to hurt more than the loss of Jay Gruden as offensive coordinator. New d-coordinator Paul Guenther has been with the Bengals for eight years, though, so he should know what he's doing. Still, Zimmer was a proven commodity. His absence will be felt.

A Tougher Schedule

Perhaps most importantly, the Bengals face a tougher schedule this year, by virtue of winning the division last year.  The division will be better. And, yes, the Steelers will be better.

And, as with any team, there will be injuries, which are unpredictable. As with any team, you wonder how the Bengals will fare if their starting quarterback goes down, or a star like A.J. Green. 

But if Andy Dalton misses any significant time with injury, look out below. The backups are Jason Campbell and A.J. McCarron. Ugh.

It says here the Bengals take a step back this year. They can't stand success.

Ol' No. 99

Now that it's June 3rd, and all that Lamarr Woodley cap money is freed up, it's no surprise there is rekindled talk that the Steelers are interested in resigning Brett Keisel.

It seems like a no-brainer, except for a few things: First and foremost, Keisel may not want to return at a team-friendly salary; also, Keisel is 36, and the Steelers are going younger on the defensive line.

Still, to our untrained eyes, Keisel seemed to play reasonably well last year. It would be good to have him back.

Keisel would provide a steadying presence on the defensive line the way Ike Taylor will in the secondary. Like Ike, he would get some playing time, but probably not most of the snaps. Second-round draft choice Stephon Tuitt projects as the starter, although the depth chart today shows Brian Arnfelt as the starter at Keisel's old position, right defensive end.

For what it's worth, the Steelers signed an undrafted free agent described as "a young Brett Keisel." That would be Josh Mauro, (6'6", 271), DE, Stanford, whom some people projected as a fifth-round draft choice. Another undrafted free agent, Ethen Hemer, (6'6", 285, Wisconsin), will compete for a roster spot, as will 2013 seventh-round draft choice Nick Williams (6'6", 309, Samford).

This gets a little deep, but there was one other player in this year's draft, in addition to Josh Mauro, whose style of play brings Keisel to mind for some observers. That player is Taylor Hart (6'6", 281, Oregon), who was drafted in the fifth round by the Philadelphia Eagles.  In fact, the NFL Network's Brian Baldinger described Hart this way: "To me, if I had to make a comparison now, he looks like a young Brett Keisel without the beard. He's got a promising future as a five-technique in any 3-4 defense. He broke his foot at the end of the (2013) season but he was a four-year starter. He's 6-foot-6, 280, can run and he's got violent hands."

In a roundabout way, Hart has a peripheral connection to the Steelers.  That's because, in the 2013 draft, the Steelers dealt this year's third-round choice to Cleveland for the right to draft safety Shamarko Thomas in the fourth round last year. The Browns used that third-round choice as part of a package to move up in the first round this year to draft quarterback Johnny Manziel, via a trade with Philadelphia. The Eagles, in turn, dealt that pick they got from Cleveland to the Houston Texans in a trade that landed Houston what would have been the Steelers' third-round pick this year, which the Texans used to select Louis Nix, (NT, Notre Dame). And, finally, with the fourth- and fifth-round picks the Eagles received from Houston, they selected Jaylen Watkins (CB, Florida, Rd. 4, No. 101 overall) and, yes, Taylor Hart (DE, Oregon, Rd. 5, No. 141 overall).

Got it?  In a post last month, we asked, "Would you rather have Louis Nix or Shamarko Thomas?"...since Louis Nix was taken with the pick that the Steelers traded for the right to draft Shamarko Thomas.

But today, since we're talking about Brett Keisel, we could just as easily ask, "Would you rather have Shamarko Thomas or ... Taylor Hart ("a young Brett Keisel without the beard)? ... and a fourth-round cornerback from Florida named Jaylen Watkins.  It's just hypothetical, because there is no possibility the draft would have worked out that way (for the Steelers to have those picks). If the Steelers were still on the board and Nix was available, they may have taken him. Or maybe not. Maybe they weren't sold on him at all.

For now, they have who they have, and they don't have Brett Keisel.

But that could change any day now. And over time we'll just have to see if Josh Mauro or Taylor Hart develop into the next Brett Keisel. If Mauro does, we'll say "great!" If Hart does, in an Eagles uniform, we'll say, "He should've been a Steeler!"