Azeez Al-Shaair was suspended for 3 games and Houston Texans fans believe he was treated unfairly.
The Houston Texans win in Week 13 was overshadowed by the discussion surrounding Azeez Al-Shaair. The veteran linebacker was ejected from the game following a late hit on Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
There's no question the hit was uncalled for and Al-Shaair was ejected from the game. Also ejected was Jarrion Jones of the Jaguars, who wasn't too thrilled with comments made by DeMeco Ryans recently.
After the game, Al-Shaair was suspended for three games, and the league released a rather harsh statement condemning him for the hit on Lawrence as well as previous late hits. Al-Shaair appealed the decision, which was upheld.
Houston fans were already frustrated to see Al-Shaair hit with a three-game ban but it became worse when a video surfaced of Jon Runyan delivering a late and violent flying headbutt while playing against the San Francisco 49ers.
Runyan serves as the NFL vice president of football operations and was the one who penned the letter condeming Al-Shaair, saying:
“Your lack of sportsmanship and respect for the game of football and all those who play, coach, and enjoy watching it, is troubling and does not reflect the core values of the NFL."
The appeal seemed to last about 10 seconds before being denied, which led to more concerns. Pro Football Talk called out Ramon Foster, who heard the appeal, for refusing to discuss the process. They believe there should be more transparency. Houston fans would agree, but they also don't think Foster lived up to the "core values of the NFL."
They weren't done there either. Texans fans have been sharing one video after another of players being lit up with late hits, that aren't leading to massive suspensions.
And this was all just from the Thursday Night Football showdown between the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers. Which, led to no penalties by the way.
The NFL has been criticized often for it's inconsistency in discipline and this seems to be another example of that happening.
