Texans Defend Azeez Al-Shaair Amid Outrage Over ‘Dirty’ Hit, Say Trevor Lawrence Slid Too Late

Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans insists that the team stands behind linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair amid his twin controversies over his dirty hit against Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence in last Sunday’s game on top of his “Free Palestine” cleats that he wore during the game.

Al-Shaair is under a lot of scrutiny for his dirty hit against Lawrence during the Texans’ game with the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday when he threw a stiff forearm to the Jags quarterback even though Lawrence was taken his slide already down. The hit was so brutal that Lawrence was carted off the field by medics.
WATCH:

Now, on Monday, Texans coach Ryans stuck up for Al-Shaair and told reporters, “With the entire Azeez situation, we stand behind Azeez and everything that came from that,” the Daily Mail reported.

“Unfortunately, he hit a quarterback, but it’s two-fold. A lot of quarterbacks in this day and age are trying to take advantage of the rule when they slide late, and they try to get an extra yard,” Ryans continued.

“When you’re a defender, a lot of onus is on the defender. Whether it’s on the sideline or whether it’s on the quarterback, you don’t know what a guy’s thinking. You don’t know if a guy’s standing up and he’s continuing to run, you don’t know. And then you get a late slide, and you hit the guy.”

He added, “It’s unfortunate that Trevor got hurt, and I hope Trevor’s OK, but also, if you’re sliding, you have to get down, and if you’re getting out of bounds, then get out of bounds, because that rule is there to protect the quarterbacks.”

“We want our quarterbacks to be safe in the league. So, we just have to be safe, and if we’re sliding, make sure we’re keeping our heads down,” he said.

He blasted the Jacksonville Jaguars for “overreacting” to Al-Shaair’s nasty hit on Lawrence.

“Azeez hits the guy, but their sideline overreacts, and it turns into a melee. It wasn’t our guys. Their team overreacted and pushed our guy, dragged our guy to the sidelines. That’s uncalled for,” Ryans exclaimed.

Ryans also claimed that Al-Shaair is a “great human being,” and everyone who knows him will agree.

The coach added that Al-Shaair is a “special young man” and loves working with him. He insisted, “Any picture that’s painting Azeez as a dirty player or doing something intentional… that’s the exact opposite of what Azeez is.”

The dirty hit on Lawrence isn’t the only controversy swirling around Al-Shaair. He is also under scrutiny for wearing cleats that said “Free Palestine” on them.

Al-Shaair wore these cleats during the game, where he delivered his much-scorned blow against Lawrence.

Not only does the cleat feature “Free Palestine,” but it also contains the phrase, “Surely to Allah we belong, and to him we will all return,” certainly an affront to all non-Muslims.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, or Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston