You wanted a villain, NFL?
Fine, Azeez Al-Shaair will wear the crown.
The Houston Texans veteran linebacker tweeted Wednesday night that he’s embracing the “villain role” after the league elected to uphold his three-game suspension for a hit in Sunday’s win that left Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence concussed.
“If you want me to be your villain, I’ll be your villain,” Al-Shaair wrote, followed by a middle finger emoji. “See you soon.”
IF YOU WANT ME TO BE YOUR VILLAIN, ILL BE YOUR VILLAIN!🖕🏾SEE YOU SOON…🃏 pic.twitter.com/GA5FMglMjz
— Azeez Al-shaair (@A_train2_) December 5, 2024
Al-Shaair met with NFLPA representative Ramon Foster for his appeal meeting on Wednesday. After further review, Foster elected to make sure that the sixth-year linebacker served all three games.
Earlier this week, Al-Shaair issued an apology to Lawrence for the hit. Lawrence was placed on injured reserve Wednesday afternoon.
“To Trevor i genuinely apologize to you for what ended up happening,” Al-Shaair wrote. “Before the game we spoke and I told you how great it was 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 was ruled ‘late’ or ‘unnecessary.'”
Jon Runyan, the NFL’s vice president of policy and rules administration, told Al-Shaair in a letter that the hit was “unacceptable” and that his “continued disregard” for player safety rules “will not be tolerated.
“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,” Runyan wrote.
Texans general manager Nick Caserio criticized the league for its language in its letter announcing the initial ruling during Tuesday’s press conference and asked for consistency in how it hands out suspensions.
“For the league to make some of the commentary that it made about lack of sportsmanship … lack of paying attention to the rules,” Caserio said. “Quite frankly, it’s embarrassing.”
With the suspension being upheld, Al-Shaair will miss the Texans’ games against the Dolphins, Chiefs and Ravens on Christmas Day.
He’ll be eligible to return for their regular-season finale against the Titans in Nashville. The sixth-year linebacker will also be forced to give up $112,745 per game.
