On Monday, Houston head coach DeMeco Ryans addressed Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair’s hit that caused a concussion on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence on Sunday.
He blamed Lawrence. And he believes the Jaguars players overreacted when they responded to the hit.
Ryans spoke about the hit during his press conference Monday afternoon.
Wow.
HC Demeco Ryans says Trevor Lawrence is to blame for his players’ cheap shot.
The Texans are slowly becoming the most hated team in the league
— NFL Notifications (@NFLNotify) December 3, 2024
“We support Azeez and everything that came from that,” Ryans said. “Of course, the unfortunate hit on a quarterback. But there are two sides to it. A lot of quarterbacks in this era try to take advantage of the late slide rule and try to get an extra yard.
“Now, you’re a defender, and a lot of the responsibility falls on the defender. Whether he’s on the bench or at quarterback, you don’t know what a player is thinking. You don’t know if a player is going to stay.” And he keeps running. You don’t know. And you slide late and hit the guy.
“It’s a shame Trevor got hurt. We hope Trevor is okay. But also, if we’re sliding, we have to duck.”
Here is the hit at full speed:
And again in slow motion:
Lawrence began his slide as Al-Shaair prepared for the tackle. Al-Shaair then lunged headlong at Lawrence after Lawrence had surrendered. The hit left Lawrence dazed on the field and out of the game with a concussion. It also sparked a fight when Jaguars players responded in kind to Al-Shaair’s hit.
Ryans has a problem with this too.
“It’s all about Azeez punching the guy, but his gang overreacts and it turns into a hand-to-hand combat,” Ryans said. “It wasn’t our guys. Their team overreacted, pushing our guy, dragging him to the bench. So that’s not necessary on that side. We have to be better on the bench with both teams as well.”
The NFL handed out ejections to both teams on Sunday. Al-Shaair was expelled for the hit that caused it all. Jaguars cornerback Jarrian Jones was ejected for his role in the ensuing melee.
Earlier Monday, Al-Shaair issued a statement apologizing for hurting Lawrence and declaring that he would “never want to see any player hurt by a hit I gave them, especially one that is considered ‘late’ or ‘unnecessary.'” The comments about “late” and “unnecessary” are yours.
The next voice to weigh in is expected to be the NFL amid calls to impose substantial discipline for the hit.