Adam 'Pacman' Jones Gave Joey Porter Exactly What He Wanted With Moronic, Game-Costing Penalty
By Matt Dolloff
BOSTON (CBS) -- To blow a game because of a stupid penalty is one of the most embarrassing ways to lose. To blow a playoff game with TWO stupid penalties and make excuses afterward? That transcends the word "embarrassing."
Bengals corner Adam "Pacman" Jones has already sewn up his reputation as a mercurial, emotional player who will make dirty plays and do stupid things in the name of "playing with emotion," and only further underlines his selfishness when he refuses to take accountability for his actions. He managed to do all of those things within 90 seconds at the end of the Steelers - Bengals Wild Card game in Cincinnati, when he compounded one stupid personal foul by Vontaze Burfict with another, even dumber penalty, by shoving Steelers linebackers coach Joey Porter and making contact with the referee.
And, in true Pacman fashion, he ranted about it on Instagram after the game and refused to accept responsibility for blowing the game by being incredibly, cringe-inducing-ly stupid.
"[Expletive] ref did a HORRIBLE [expletive] job," Jones said in an Instagram video which he later deleted. "You've got Joey Porter in the middle of the [expletive] field talking [expletive] to everybody, then when somebody say something to him ... he ain't supposed to be on the [expletive] field."
Sure. Blame Joey Porter. Blame the referee. Surely it's not your fault that you couldn't control yourself enough to keep your hands off the officials and coaches.
Look, it's not like Porter had a right to be on the field. He should not have been in the middle of that fray, even with the Steelers' Antonio Brown down on the field after Burfict's egregious helmet-to-helmet hit. Pacman was provoked by whatever Porter was saying - and, considering Porter was an expert-level troll/trash-talker in his playing days, there's no doubt he knew how to push Pacman over the edge. In this case, it may have only taken a gentle nudge.
Despite the refs screwing up the call on Pacman (Porter's presence on the field should have made the penalties offset), it's no excuse for Jones to put his hands on Porter or an official. It doesn't matter what he said; you need to control yourself. This applies to every situation, let alone the end of a playoff game with a lead. Jones just needed to keep his emotions in check for another 90 seconds. The Bengals had a playoff win in their grasp, and let it drop into the Steelers' laps with their laughably dumb behavior, perhaps the most wildly moronic way to blow a game in NFL history.
Porter knew what he was doing with whatever he said to set Jones off. He knew that if he could just needle Jones a little bit, he could get Pacman to go into a blind rage and do something idiotic. Worst case scenario for him? A fine, which he is likely to get, or an offsetting penalty. But, Porter got the absolute best result possible. He will gladly take a fine in exchange for Pacman blowing the game for his team. The cost of doing business, if you will.
Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis will reportedly keep his job after that 58-minute street fight followed by two-minute catastrophe, but the actions of both Jones and Burfict illustrate Lewis's utter lack of control over his roster. It's clear that he doesn't hold Jones accountable for his actions because Jones obviously will not do it for himself. It's one of the biggest reasons that the Bengals will never win a playoff game, let alone a Super Bowl, with the current roster and coaching staff.
Controlling your emotions, and understanding the situation, are two of the most important things in football. Teams who lack these abilities consistently lose in the biggest situations, and it stems from poor coaching and a severe lack of discipline. New England fans ought to feel lucky not only to have such a great head coach in Bill Belichick in the first place but to have a coach who has his locker room under control, prepares them for every situation and avoids costly mistakes at the end of games. Patriots fans never have to witness such unfathomable stupidity, and that level of control comes from the top.
There are other fanbases with smart, disciplined coaching staffs who don't commit the kinds of mistakes the Bengals made at the end of that game, and they also probably stared at their TV screens in disbelief. The only way that trainwreck would have been more spectacular is if Burfict wasn't down by contact when he made the potential game-sealing interception and inadvertently gave the Steelers a safety. The Bengals have been a talented mess for several years now, and Saturday night proved that nothing has changed.
Mental toughness is arguably the most important aspect of winning football games, and the Bengals do not have it. If they want it, they should start by sending Pacman Jones to the unemployment line.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
