Detroit ? Joey Porter, the Steelers’ accomplished and outspoken linebacker, always is good for a salacious quote.

Except when seated in front of dozens of reporters at Super Bowl media day.

“The big story isn’t how I go out there and play football,” Porter said Tuesday. “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. They feel like they’re going to tug and tug and tug until he breaks. But it’s not going to happen. I’m not going to give you anything special.”

Porter apparently was paying attention when coach Bill Cowher warned his players not to say anything that could be construed as disrespectful to the Seahawks.

“You don’t want to go out there and say anything that’s going to give the opponent something to put on his bulletin board,” Porter said.

Porter bristled when asked what it was like to get shot, as he was in the left buttocks outside a Colorado bar in 2003. But the closest he came to letting his guard down was when he was asked by new waves of reporters about his matchup with Seahawks left tackle Walter Jones.

“I’ve got to go against the guy,” Porter said. “I’m sure he’s not sitting up there talking about how great I am, so I’m not going to sit up here talking about how great he is all day. I told you, I feel like he’s one of the best offensive linemen in the league. How many ways do you want me to say it?”

¢ No respect: The Seahawks have won 13 of their last 14 games, but it’s the Steelers who are favored to win Super Bowl XL. This despite the fact that Pittsburgh is the AFC’s sixth seed and Seattle is the NFC’s top seed.

“People expect the Steelers to win the game. Oh, well, it is what it is,” Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. “It doesn’t surprise me that they’re the favorite. There are a lot of things that people don’t know about us, starting with our names.”

¢ Two-timer: Mike Holmgren can become the first coach to win a Super Bowl with two different franchises. He’s one of only five coaches to lead two franchises to the Super Bowl. Holmgren’s Packers won one Super Bowl and lost another.

“I’m trying to enjoy it a little more this time,” Holmgren said. “We had highs and lows in our seven years (in Seattle), and this is the best year in the franchise’s history. So I’m trying to take a little time to reflect on it all.”