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Steelers, Seahawks play it close to vest

Media Day void of any bulletin board material or circus acts

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DETROIT - No crazy statements, no one wearing dog collars. Even mouthy Joey Porter tried his best to keep his mouth shut.

All in all, players from the Steelers and Seahawks were relatively subdued at Super Bowl Media Day Tuesday. Nobody wanted to give the other team bulletin board material or turn their appearance into a circus.

And nobody came close to making the same entrance as Falcons cornerback Ray Buchanan, who famously wore a dog collar to media day for the 1999 Super Bowl.

Porter said coach Bill Cowher addressed the team about keeping its comments tame. Earlier this month, Porter criticized the officiating after Pittsburgh’s 21-18 playoff win against Indianapolis because Troy Polamalu’s interception was overturned by replay.

The call nearly cost Pittsburgh the game. The NFL later said the officials made a mistake.

“The bigger story is what I say,” Porter said. “The big story isn’t how I go out there and play football. The bigger story is what he’s going to say next. That’s the only reason why I have people waiting for me right now. I’m not going to give you anything special but to answer these questions, one at a time, and I’m going to take my time doing it.”

While the opinionated linebacker sat at the podium, some of his lesser-known teammates had their video cameras in hand. Rookie backup guard Chris Kemoeatu was eating a box of chocolates with a few teammates in the stands.

When it came time for Seattle to greet the media, Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck bantered with comedian Gilbert Gottfried, then was handed a mock award by a television reporter dubbing him the player “most likely to appear on ’The View.”’

Hasselbeck’s sister-in-law, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, is a co-host on the show. The Seahawks star accepted the award, and was asked him for an acceptance speech.

“It’s quite an honor,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to appear on ’The View.’ And I just hope they let me sit next to Barbara (Walters) because she’s the star of the show. Thank you.”

It's not a dome
Just in case anyone is wondering, Ford Field is technically not a dome.

The roof is made of steel. At domed stadiums, a fiberglass-fabric material is supported by air — such as at the Pontiac Silverdome, site of the Super Bowl in 1982.

Ford Field, which opened in 2002, has a concourse with exposed brick, a towering glass wall and a warehouse on one side that is nearly a century old.

Hair today
When the Seahawks decided they would bring everyone at team headquarters to the Super Bowl, they meant it. Running back Shaun Alexander paid for unofficial team barber Jason Kinlow to come to Detroit.

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Kinlow took on that role 10 years ago when former Seahawks quarterback Jon Kitna invited him into the locker room to cut players’ hair. Kitna and Kinlow went to school together.

Last week, Alexander called Kinlow and gave him the news. Kinlow was so overwhelmed he could barely put into words what the gesture meant. He arrives Thursday.

“It’s good,” Kinlow said last week as he sat in the barber’s chair he set up outside the shower in the locker room. “It’s cool.”


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