Assistant coach arrested after Steeler victory
STEELERS assistant coach Joey Porter was arrested at a Pittsburgh bar Sunday night, authorities said.
Porter, a former linebacker for the Steelers, was cuffed around 9:30 p.m. at The Flats hours after his team beat the Miami Dolphins, 30-12, at Heinz Field.
A bouncer called 911 “due to an unruly customer” identified as the 39-year-old linebackers coach, Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Sonya Toler said in an emailed statement to the Daily News.
The Beaver County Times reports Porter fought with a police officer during the arrest. — Nicole Hensley
‘WHAT IF...’
As the playoffs played in the background, the Raiders packed their bags, said their goodbyes and began an offseason that started far sooner than they had hoped or expected before star quarterback Derek Carr broke his right leg.
With Carr in a walking boot unable to travel, the Raiders lost the season finale at Denver to fall short of a division title and a firstround bye. Then they were dominated in a 27-14 loss to Houston on Saturday in their first playoff game in 14 years.
While backups Matt McGloin and Connor Cook struggled to move the offense the past two weeks, Carr could only wonder what the Raiders (12-5) might have been able to accomplish had he not broken his leg late in a victory Dec. 24 against Indianapolis.
“I’m human. Yeah, absolutely. I said, ‘What if?’ I said, ‘why?’ A lot, in the last two weeks,” Carr said Sunday. “But I can promise you, I’ve been the same person. It’s obviously hurt me. Some days, I’ve been really down and sad, but it doesn’t change who I am. It just hurts, man. It just hurts because I love our team. I love our coaches. I love the fans. I love playing this game.”
Carr gave the Raiders great hope with a spectacular season in which he threw for 3,937 yards and 28 touchdowns. He led seven fourth-quarter comebacks and became an MVP contender by spearheading a turnaround for a franchise that lost the first 10 games of 2014, Carr’s rookie season.
BROWNS ADD WILLIAMS
Gregg Williams revived his coaching career after shame and suspension. His next challenge: repairing Cleveland’s leaky defense. Williams was hired Sunday as the Browns defensive coordinator, replacing Ray Horton, fired by coach Hue Jackson less than a week after Cleveland concluded a 1-15 season.
Williams was banned by the NFL for one season in 2012 for his involvement in New Orleans’ notorious “Bountygate” scandal. He spent the past three seasons with the Rams. It’s the second time Horton has been dismissed by the Browns after one season, and while he appears to be the one taking the fall for the team’s failure, Jackson said that’s not the case.
RAYE OF HOPE
The San Francisco 49ers interviewed Indianapolis vice president of football operations Jimmy Raye III for the team’s vacant general manager job. CEO Jed York met with Raye as part of his crosscountry interview tour to find replacements for fired coach Chip Kelly and general manager Trent Baalke following a 2-14 season that tied the worst mark in franchise history. Raye is the son of former 49ers offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye II, who held the job in 2009-10. He has spent the past four years with the Colts after a 17-year tenure in San Diego, where he served as director of college scouting and then director of player personnel.