Dolphins' Porter claims officials apply different rules to Pats' Brady

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Dolphins' Porter claims officials apply different rules to Pats' Brady
NFL.com

Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis complained earlier this year about what he perceived to be a different set of rules for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Lewis' comments came after Baltimore was called for two roughing-the-passer penalties against Brady during a narrow Week 4 loss at New England.

Now Joey Porter is joining Lewis in protest.

In his weekly "Porter's House" segment Thursday on NFL Network, the outspoken Miami Dolphins linebacker was unequivocal in his belief that officials treat Brady differently than other quarterbacks.

"When a guy can tell a ref when to throw a flag and he gets it and stuff like that, I mean he got his own rules," said Porter, whose Dolphins face the Patriots in a crucial AFC East showdown Sunday. "They made the whole 'don't go at the legs (rule)' because of Tom. So whenever he feels that somebody is coming at his legs, he just points at the ref and he gets the flag. So you got to honestly say that he has his own set of rules."

That wasn't all Porter had to say about the Patriots. He revealed that he has long hated the team and said the Dolphins felt disrespected by New England's "players and the coaching staff" because they chose to kick the ball into Miami's stretching area before last season's game in Foxborough, Mass.

"Certain stuff like that, they know that you can't do, but they did it when we were in New England, and somehow they got away with it" Porter said. "They won't be able to try that again this week."

Never one to mince words, Porter also revealed the root of his dislike for the Patriots.

"The hate has been there for awhile, especially after the cheating they did back in the day," Porter said, referring to the Patriots' 2007 videotaping scandal that cost them their 2008 first-round draft pick.

Porter then continued, "They can sweep it under the rug if they want to, but just like anybody else that do something (wrong), that's caught by cheating, you put an asterisk by it."

Last week, Porter talked tough about the Jets, and his team backed him up with a 30-25 victory at New York. Will the Dolphins do so again at Gillette Stadium on Sunday?

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He could certainly add Peyton Manning to the list of QBs with "special protection" from the refs in my opinion. The league needs to scale back the QB protection rules or at the very least start applying the same rules to everybody (when was the last time Bulger got several 'roughing the passer' calls in a game based on dubious situations with minimal contact to the helmet/legs (often unavoidable based on the defenders momentum)?).

I see he's also a supporter of the 18-1* campaign, he's got my support on that point as well ;)

I agree the calls for roughing the QB do seem to greatly influenced by who the QB is. That call is very inconsistent and can be game changing when they penalize the defense for getting to the QB.

Bulger has gotten a few roughing the QB calls this year that have helped us out. One was in the redskins game and it eliminated a turnover.

QBs like Brady and Peyton are smart enough to work the officials and they can influence the calls that are made. All part of the game in a way. Officials are human and they can be played. Good players are going to use everything in their power to win.

I wonder if Porter gets a lifetime ban or just a one season suspension for speaking ill of the Messia....er, I mean Brady.

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Originally Posted by HUbison

I wonder if Porter gets a lifetime ban or just a one season suspension for speaking ill of the Messia....er, I mean Brady.

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Since we haven't heard anything yet, I'm assuming Brady hasn't told the league how he wants them to handle it.:D