Even the GOAT, Tom Brady, said that it’s the nature of the defenders to tackle aggressively. But nothing worked for the Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair. The NFL suspended him for 3 games after his tackle on Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence. The team tried to reverse the decision through an appeal, but failed.
Appeals officer Ramon Foster upheld the 3-game decision. In that scenario, he is set to miss 3 key games. The first is the week 15 game against the Miami Dolphins, followed by the Chiefs in week 16, and Ravens in week 17. That’s an immense blow. The Texans will miss their defensive captain. But what exactly happened that forced the NFL to take this big decision?
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For those of you who didn’t watch it yet, here are the details. On 4:15 mark in the 2nd quarter, Jaguars QB was pressing ahead with the ball on 2nd & 7, but Azeez Al-Shaair tackled him and hit his head with his forearm. The hit was brutal. So intense that the ball dropped out of QB’s hands, his head hit the turf and his right hand just stayed in the air.
For a few seconds, it felt like he could not move his body. Lawrence concussed his head and was placed on the injured reserve (IR) list. A massive sideline brawl erupted. It was anger and chaos all over the place. And the league had to set an example from this scenario.
Stay tuned. There’s more to this story.