Houston Texans star Azeez Al-Shaair is set to be suspended by the NFL over the vicious tackle which left Trevor Lawrence concussed and the football world outraged on Sunday.
Al-Shaair sparked major controversy in the Texans’ 23-20 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars after flying into Lawrence with his elbow first, despite the rival quarterback sliding to give himself up on the play.
The brutal hit left Jaguars players and coaches seething, with both teams involved in a mass brawl before the Texans defender was swiftly ejected from the game.
And following the uproar over his illegal tackle, ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Al-Shaair will be hit with a suspension.
It is currently unclear how long the suspension will be, yet the NFL is expected to come down hard on the player after his dangerous hit forced a dazed Lawrence off on a cart.
Despite being carted off the field, later on Sunday night the Jacksonville star reassured fans that he is recovering well at home and ‘feeling better’.
Azeez Al-Shaair is set to be suspended by the NFL after his brutal hit on Trevor Lawrence
The Houston Texans linebacker will be punished for the illegal tackle that has sparked outrage
The following morning Marissa, his wife of the last three years, released a message thanking fans for their support and stressing that Trevor’s health is her priority right now.
Al-Shaair, who is also under fire over the controversial political message he was wearing on his cleats, also issued a statement on Monday morning after being ejected from the game against Jacksonville.
As well as apologizing to him, the 27-year-old insisted it was never his intention to harm Lawrence and that he only saw him sliding when it was ‘too late’.
‘I’ve always played the game as hard as I could. Never with the intent to harm anyone and anybody that knows me knows that,’ Al-Shaair wrote. ‘My goal is to hit you as hard as I can then I pray you’re still able to get up and play the next play. And when the game is over go home to your family unharmed because it’s not personal it’s just competition! We both are trying to do the same thing which is provide for our families!
‘I genuinely didn’t see him sliding until it was too late. And it all happens in the blink of an eye.
‘To Trevor i genuinely apologize to you for what ended up happening. Before the game we spoke and I told you how it was great to see you back out on the field and wished you well. I would never want to see any player hurt because of a hit I put on them especially one that’s deemed “late” or “unnecessary”.
‘To the rest of his teammates I can definitely understand you having his back and defending him in a situation like that. To the rest of the people who l’ve been called every single name in the book from reporters with their hands ready for a story to find their villan, to racist and islamophobic fans and people, you don’t know my heart nor my character which I don’t need to prove to any of you.
‘God knows my intentions and anyone who has ever been a teammate or friend of mine knows my heart.’
Al-Shaair now finds himself at the center of further controversy after eagle-eyed fans spotted a pro-Palestine message written on his cleats in Sunday’s game.
The Tampa-born NFL star, who is a practicing muslim, had ‘Free’ written on the outside of his cleats in red and green Palestine colors, with messages written on the side.
Taking to X, NFL fans piled in on the player for using the sport to share his political views, with one writing: ‘Ooh now I really hate him.’
Another urged the NFL to suspend him, but others defended him and wrote: ‘Religion of peace.’
A right-wing commentator, meanwhile, has demanded fans ‘boycott the NFL’ after accusing Al-Shaair of wearing a ‘pro-terrorism message’ on his cleats.
