Here's the article I just finished. Please chime in here with any thoughts or comments. Images and other writings of my can be viewed at the link if you so desire. Thanks, RB http://isportsweb.com/2010/01/28/breaking-news-2/ BREAKING NEWS! By Ronn Burner • on January 28, 2010 Joey Porter is not happy. He is frustrated and wants out of Miami. Pfft. So? He should be cut before I even finish this sentence. Forget the logistics of his contract, which alone should make for the obvious “It’s been fun but…” chat but just the fact he has the audacity to rock the very boat that the other 52 guys fought all year to keep afloat is grounds enough to send him packing. In fact, there have been several reports that coaches and teammates alike treaded lightly this past season in a collective i.e. “for the betterment of the team” attempt to not “rock the Joey boat.” It’s just comical to me. Who does he think he is, The Artist Formerly Known as Prince but then Wasn’t and Now is Again? I’m sure that conversation with Bill Parcells, Tony Sparano and Jeff Ireland went about as well as 95% of those American Idol auditions. PORTER: “No Bill, I really AM the next Lawrence Taylor!” PARCELLS: (In a british accent trying to make Tony and Jeff laugh.) “Um, no you’re not. Your play was complete and utter rubbish. Thanks for trying. Off you go. Security.” There’s a time and a need for all things. We got Porter way back in 2007 and at the time he was exactly the type of player we desperately needed and I loved what he brought to our franchise. For that I will always appreciate the productivity, energy and attitude he brought to the field. The man was a beast in his prime but Pittsburgh dumped him when the erosion had already begun. His intensity, passion, fire, drive, confidence and swagger were unmatched. I do not take away the amazing season he had in 2008 with 17.5 sacks and the Joey Porter in his prime will always be a player I revered. That was then, this is now. The Joey Porter we have today is a 32 year old, selfish, polarizing, controversial, distracting, injury prone, disruptive team cancer that is displeased with how he is being utilized. There’s also a negative side. He does not produce on the field. Porter is scheduled to earn a base salary of $3.8 million in 2010, plus a $200,000 workout bonus. Huh? A workout bonus? So we’re going to pay you millions to underachieve for us and ***** at us for it then we’ll throw in a quarter of a million extra for you just for showing up for your job. If Miami releases Porter, the team owes him nothing. So let me get this straight, we can keep our locker room cancer and it’s going to cost us $4 million next year or we can be cancer free by getting figurative chemotherapy at no charge. Zero penalties. Costing us nothing. No catch. No strings attached. This is a Ponzi scam right?
