For the second time in three years, Patriots safety Rodney Harrison tops Sports Illustrated's list of dirtiest players in the NFL.
Of the 361 NFL players polled during the preseason, 23 percent of them pointed to Harrison. Second on the list were Joey Porter of the Steelers and Jon Runyan of the Eagles at 6 percent each.
"Do I take perverse pride in this?" Harrison told the Boston media. "All I can say is as many guys as say I'm a dirty player, just as many come up and tell me they admire how I play, the hard work, the commitment, the toughness. That's the pride you're looking for. I take pride in that.
"But dirty? I don't think you guys can look in my eyes and say I'm a dirty player."
Rounding out the list were Warren Sapp of the Raiders (5 percent), Kyle Turley of the Chiefs (4 percent), Hines Ward of the Steelers (4 percent), Sean Taylor of the Redskins (3 percent), John Lynch of the Broncos (3 percent), Kevin Mawae of the Titans (3 percent) and Olin Kreutz of the Bears (2 percent).