For most of his NFL career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, former linebacker Joey Porter wasn’t exactly admired by the division-rival Cincinnati Bengals or their fans. That animosity only grew when Porter became the Steelers’ outside linebackers coach. During the Wild Card Round matchup between the two teams in 2016, Porter crossed the line when he entered the field and began trash-talking Bengals players.

Mike Tomlin was the Steelers’ head coach at the time. Now, years later, Tomlin took a trip down memory lane and explained what happened during that game. He revealed that he had initially wanted Porter on the sideline as someone who could help keep Pittsburgh’s own players under control if things became chaotic, rather than having him enter the field himself.

“I deputized him,” recalled Tomlin, per Blitzburgh. “We had a nasty relationship with that group. And so I called him in my office before that game, on game day, I said, ‘If it goes berserk in any way, I’m coming on the field. I want you to come with me. I’m going to the action. I want you to control our guys.”

The Bengals entered the Wild-Card matchup after winning the AFC North in the 2015 season following their 12-4 performance. The Steelers, meanwhile, were second in the division after putting up a 10-6 record. During the Wild-Card matchup, the Steelers had a 15-0 lead entering the fourth quarter.

However, the Bengals fought and answered with a pair of touchdowns and a field goal to take a 16-15 lead late in the fourth quarter. The final sequence, however, became chaotic. With 22 seconds left, Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict hit Brown after the latter couldn’t catch a high pass from Ben Roethlisberger. The hit resulted in Brown being evaluated for a concussion. Burfict was penalized 15 yards for unnecessary roughness.

The penalty moved Pittsburgh into much better field position. However, while Mike Tomlin asked Joey Porter to stay near the sideline, the outside linebackers coach instead came onto the field. As that happened, he got into a verbal exchange with Cincinnati players, including Burfict.

Subsequently, Bengals cornerback Adam Jones became involved. He confronted Porter, and that confrontation eventually resulted in Jones receiving a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. That penalty, however, proved to be costly for the Bengals. The Steelers were already in position to attempt a field goal, but the additional 15 yards made the kick even easier.

Pittsburgh’s Chris Boswell then kicked the game-winning 35-yard field goal, giving the Steelers an 18-16 victory. Following the game, however, Joey Porter received significant criticism for entering the field, with offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth admitting, “I have a lot of respect for the Steelers, but Joey Porter isn’t one of them.”

Meanwhile, Jones went on a rant about Porter’s decision to enter the field.

“He ain’t supposed to be on the (expletive) field!” Jones said. “He was talking all kinds of (expletive), yelling at (Burfict), saying, ‘You a dirty son of a bitch … Take your bitch ass out of here …’ So I turned to him and said, ‘Why are you talking?’ I didn’t even touch him. And they threw a flag.

“How can they throw a flag on you for talking (expletive) to a coach? Especially to a (expletive) who ain’t supposed to be on the field? It’d be different if I was gonna approach a (expletive) player. There’s a big (expletive) difference. I mean, Mike Tomlin wasn’t even on the field. Why the (expletive) is Joey Porter on the field, period?”

Ultimately, Tomlin’s latest explanation provides more context for Porter’s presence on the field that night, but it doesn’t change how costly the confrontation became for Cincinnati. What began as an attempt to control the chaos ended with Porter at the center of it, while Jones’ penalty helped send the Steelers through to the Divisional Round.