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LATROBE, Pa. -- Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Clark Haggans
made this same call a hundred times, so he instinctively reached
for his cell phone before leaving for training camp. Ring up teammate and fellow linebacker Joey Porter and ask for a
ride. Only this time, the call would have been long distance. "I said, 'Oh yeah, he's in Miami," Haggans said. "Not having
him out here is a little bit of a change." For the first time since he entered the NFL in 2000, Haggans no
longer has Porter for a teammate. The Steelers released the former
Pro Bowl linebacker in a salary cap move last spring and Porter,
who had played for them since 1999, quickly signed with Miami. The Steelers without Joey Porter, one of the NFL's loudest,
proudest and, at times, best players? Haggans, who was also
Porter's teammate for all but one college season at Colorado State,
needs some time to get used to this. "I've played my college career and whole professional career up
to now with him," Haggans said. "I know this -- it's a lot quieter
now when we stretch." A lot quieter in the locker room, too, where Porter often was
the first to defend his teammates, motivate them, drive them. His
play at right outside linebacker may have slipped some as the
Steelers went 8-8 last season after winning the Super Bowl the
season before, but it was obvious the three-time Pro Bowl player
remained one of their leaders. How the Steelers react without Porter, on and off the field, is
one of the big challenges of new coach Mike Tomlin's first season. "Joey's still going to be Joey, but we're still the Steelers
and we still got a season," Haggans said. "We just got to push
forward. He wishes us luck and can't wait to play us." That will be Nov. 26, when the Dolphins play in Pittsburgh for
the second season in a row. Wide receiver Hines Ward, who has heard
so many of Porter's us-against-the-world tirades, still can't
imagine Porter talking down to his longtime teammates. Ward was among the veteran players who spoke out during the
offseason, questioning if it was wise for the Steelers to let
Porter go at age 30 with some good seasons possibly left. "I want to see if there's really going to be trash talking, if
he really can trash talk us," Ward said. "You can't trash talk
your boys, Joey." Since the Steelers won that Super Bowl 17 months ago, the three
biggest leaders from that team are gone: Former star running back
Jerome Bettis retired, coach Bill Cowher resigned after 15 seasons
and Porter was pushed out. However, the Steelers were convinced they lacked the cap room to
re-sign Porter, a decision supported by the $20 million the
Dolphins guaranteed him. Porter would have made only one-quarter of
that this season in Pittsburgh. "We'll miss Joey, there's no question, and he was great at
getting guys up each day," Ward said. "But that's how this game
goes, players come and go." This is how Porter operated: He intentionally picked a verbal
fight with Seattle tight end Jerramy Stevens during a media
interview session early in the Super Bowl week. Stevens' perceived transgression was a minor one, even by
motivational standards -- he said the Seahawks were looking forward
to ruining Bettis' retirement party. But Porter kept at it for two
days, putting the spotlight on himself and taking it away from the
younger and possibly more nervous players. Players like Porter don't come along frequently, and the
Steelers know it. It was no coincidence that, for the first time,
they drafted pass-rushing linebackers in the first two rounds --
Lawrence Timmons and LaMarr Woodley -- after releasing Porter. "He did what great leaders do, and that's make everybody around
him better," Ward said. "He's still a great ballplayer and he
raised the level of the defense to where it needed to be. It was
sad losing him because I thought he had a lot of football left in
him. It's hard to replace a guy like Joey Porter."
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