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James Harrison Sends Blunt Message to Steelers After Joey Porter Jr. Contract Standoff
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- James Harrison Sends Blunt Message to Steelers After Joey Porter Jr. Contract Standoff
The Pittsburgh Steelers have already moved on from Joey Porter Jr. , however, James Harrison clearly has not moved past how the organization handled the situation. The former Steelers linebacker took aim at the franchise after Porter's trade to the Dallas Cowboys, questioning why the team allowed a contract dispute to turn into a prolonged standoff.
Harrison's criticism went beyond one player. He used Porter's situation to challenge the Steelers' long-standing approach to contracts and roster building, and his biggest issue was simple: if the Steelers wanted to keep Porter, why didn't it make a serious offer sooner?
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James Harrison Calls Out Steelers Over Joey Porter Jr. Situation
Sep 15, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs place kicker Harrison Butker (7) and long snapper James Winchester (41) celebrate after defeating the Cincinnati Bengals at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
Harrison spoke about it on October 5. His comments came after the Steelers traded Porter to the Cowboys on September 30th. In this deal, the Steelers received a second-round pick from the Cowboys in 2028 and a conditional pick in 2027. This is because Porter had never played a game in this season due to the contract dispute.
"Steelers, this is why you don't sit there and twiddle your thumbs and play with your a*s when it comes time to give the man a deal and don't even offer him nothing. We ain't even going to say what was said, but let's just say, did you hear what I heard from the horse's mouth? That if somebody just offered him a deal, he would have been practicing the whole time. Do you want to win? Or just stick to something that is just the way it is? No, it's not. The Steeler Way now is we ain't won a playoff game in 10 years. That's the way it is. The Steeler Way now is .500. The Steeler Way now is maybe drag your a*s to the playoffs and go get kicked out."
That claim became the foundation of Harrison's broader frustration. H e was not arguing that Porter necessarily had to accept the Steelers' offer. Rather, his point was that Pittsburgh needed to create a path to keeping one of its young defensive starters, rather than letting the dispute remain unresolved.
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Porter eventually landed with Dallas and made his Cowboys debut against the Houston Texans on October 4. Meanwhile, the Steelers entered Week 5 at 2-2, with its defense still dealing with the consequences of losing a corner who had been part of the team's plans.
However, for Harrison, the Porter saga also exposed a bigger issue. He pushed back hard against the idea that the Steelers should continue following tradition simply because that is how the organization has operated. The postseason point needs context. Pittsburgh's last playoff win came on January 15, 2017, when the Steelers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 18-16. Since then, the team has gone through seven consecutive playoff losses.
That history is why Harrison's criticism lands differently.
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