Posted on 02/11/2026 3:16:42 PM PST by nickcarraway
Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker and assistant coach Joey Porter Sr. said quarterback Ben Roethlisberger wasn't a good teammate or person in a podcast recorded during the week of the Super Bowl.
He also said Roethlisberger and linebacker James Harrison "broke the brotherhood" by discussing team business and criticizing former head coach Mike Tomlin on their own podcasts.
"[Harrison] broke the brotherhood," Porter said. "Then seven [Roethlisberger] definitely broke the brotherhood. Out of anybody that should talk, he should never grab a microphone and really talk Steeler business. Because if we talk Steelers' business, his a-- is foul of all foul. The sh-- that he's did is foul of all foul. He's not a good teammate.
"Won the Super Bowl with him, but the person, he's just not a good teammate. He knows that. Anybody in the Steelers' building knows that, but we protected him because I've only won one Super Bowl and that was my quarterback. So do I love my quarterback? Yeah, but is he a good person? No."
Appearing on Cameron Heyward's podcast, "Not Just Football" from radio row, Porter didn't mince words about Harrison or Roethlisberger. Porter was teammates with Roethlisberger for three seasons, and the pair won Super Bowl XL together. During that stretch, Porter was a team captain, and he told Heyward that he was particularly frustrated by some of Roethlisberger's actions as a rookie.
In one instance, Roethlisberger refused to sign memorabilia for teammates' families, something that was common practice in the locker room, Porter said.
"He was telling people, 'No, I'm not going to sign that,'" Porter said. "So once he did that, who they come and tell? The captain. When he first did it to Chris Hoke, I was like, "Damn, that's messed up, man." I grabbed it from Hoke, took it over there and told him to sign it. But then when he did that to Aaron Smith, now I got to have a meeting [with Roethlisberger]. Like you're a rookie, you're a young guy.
"You can't tell my vets you're too cool to sign for my vets. Who the hell is too cool to sign for your teammate? I'm not a fan."
Porter also said Roethlisberger was appointed captain, rather than earning it through a locker room vote.
"We voted to be captains," Porter said. "You had to be voted in. He came in the era where they just gave you the 'C' - because if he wasn't a captain, he'd probably have a hissy fit. But nobody's going to vote for him as captain because he don't have no captain quality."
Roethlisberger's representatives didn't respond to a request for comment. Prior to Tomlin's January resignation, Roethlisberger was critical of his former head coach on his podcast, Footbahlin' with Ben Roethlisberger, saying it might be time to "clean house" following the team's Week 13 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
But speaking to reporters ahead of his induction into the team's hall of honor, Roethlisberger walked back some of his previous comments.
"Just because I said there's a time for some new things, that's just saying that I think Coach Tomlin -- if he wants to move on, he has every right to move on, it's not they should," he said then.
Porter also criticized Harrison, who he was teammates with for four seasons and later returned to coach, for taking shots at Tomlin and revealing personal conversations with the former head coach on Harrison's podcast, Deebo & Joe.
"You think the head coach didn't have his hand in making that player? So when you say he did nothing for you, that's crazy," Porter said. "Then it's like, damn, why would you take a shot at the guy who changed your life? Because [Bill] Cowher didn't change your life. Cowher cut you three times."
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Jim
You don't even have to look.
That's Leftist tone policing and group think.
There's nothing leftist about treating your teammates and their families a certain way.
And conservatives are not the cold-hearted bastards you claim they are.
We live in a Free Republic where a man is innocent until proven guilty.
The Left accused President Trump of sexual assault with zero evidence. Christine Blasey Ford did the same with Judge Kavanaugh.
Wut???
Where did I claim conservatives are cold-hearted bastards?
Was this conversation in your head? Was it with someone else?
IMHO, Tomlin was lucky to get the job, and even luckier to keep it as long as he did. Roethlisberger and Harrison may have dished some inside dirt, but amongst Steeler fans it probably did a lot more to reinforce existing opinions about Tomlin than it did to change any.
Harrison might be my favorite player of all time. Deep respect for Porter too. I think it’s really cool that his son is a Steeler.
Accused, but never actually criminally charged, let alone convicted. Anybody can accuse anyone f anything. There was insufficient evidence in either case to warrant charges and a trial.
So give back your rings. Loser. Sheesh.
Harrison ran the length of the field for a TD with no time on the clock in that possibly greatest ever Super Bowl. He doesn’t get that and they lose. Legendary effort.
That I have to agree with, in part. Every athlete, particularly at that level, in THAT game, dreams of a play like that one. Harrison caught lightning in a bottle the one time it was his to catch. This is in no way dismissive of his career achievements, just a statement of fact.
It’s the Nasty Faggot League. Who cares?
A family member had a friend who worked for the San Francisco Giants & he told my son to pick any two players on the Giants or opposing team’s roster. My son picked Jeter and Bonds. He said its common to send a dozen or two baseballs over to the visiting teams locker room to get autos for the home team players. Jeter signed, no problem, but Bonds refused because he was in 700 HR chase. The only person he signed for that year was pitcher David Wells who bought a Ruth autographed baseball and had Hank Aaron and Bonds sign it. He confirmed it in a social media back and forth I had with him. Told him the Bonds story and he knew Barry only signed for him. Son still has the Jeter ball.
The Giants and their boy John Fisher are total dirtbags. I hope they move back to Tampa.
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