Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair said he met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and other league executives during his three-game suspension for a concussion-causing hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
In a post on X on Monday, Al-Shaair criticized how the NFL characterized him in a letter announcing his suspension, but also said the meeting with Goodell and others was “productive.”
The controversy ignited when Al-Shaair delivered a late, hard hit on Lawrence while the quarterback slid on a second-quarter play in the Texans’ Week 13 win over the Jags. Lawrence left the game and was later placed on injured reserve with a concussion. In the immediate aftermath, a scuffle broke out on the sidelines and officials ejected Al-Shaair. Coaches and officials escorted Al-Shaair off the field as he argued with Jaguars players, one was also ejected while another received a penalty.
Al-Shaair subsequently apologized for the hit, and the NFL fined and suspended him later that week. A letter from Jon Runyan, NFL vice president of football operations, referenced two previous fines Al-Shaair received for late hits this season and said the linebacker showed a “lack of sportsmanship and respect for the game of football.”
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Al-Shaair said Monday that he met with Goodell, Runyan, NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent and others to “express the way I felt about how I was characterized in the letter sent out by the NFL.”
“Without going into detail, the meeting we had was productive and gave me hope for moving forward and playing the game that I love with continued best intentions, while also not having my character and integrity unjustifiably smeared,” Al-Shaair wrote.
“In that conversation — man-to-man — I owned and acknowledged that my actions following my ejection were careless and, in that moment, I didn’t think about the responsibility I have been blessed with to represent the shield,” he continued. “I also stated that the letter, and specifically the language used in the letter, was equally as careless and conveyed that the context of the words used were not a reflection of my character, nor my career, as I have not been warned multiple times for my play on the field.”
— Azeez Al-shaair (@A_train2_) December 31, 2024
Al-Shaair also thanked the Texans organization and “anyone in the media who sent me any type of positive feedback or defended my character along with my intentions on my behalf.”
“While so many jumped at the first opportunity to hop on the false narrative — that I’m a dirty player or a bad person — the messages from all who stood by me were the only things keeping me mentally afloat during a time of isolation,” Al-Shaair wrote.
“I’ve learned so much from this entire experience. Seeing myself on video — letting my emotions get the best of me to the point where I completely lost it — was an embarrassing and eye-opening moment for me. I’ve had to earn everything in my life. I never want to allow anyone to get me to a point where I jeopardize everything that I’ve worked all my life to obtain.”
Al-Shaair returned to practice with his Houston on Monday after serving his suspension. The Texans, 9-7 and first in the AFC South, play the Tennessee Titans (3-13) on Sunday in their regular-season finale.
(Photo: Mike Carlson / Getty Images)
