Photo Credit: Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP
Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair opened up Wednesday about the mental and emotional toll of his three-game suspension following a controversial hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Speaking to reporters for the first time since the suspension, Al-Shaair described the difficult days that followed, saying he found himself in a “really dark place.”
“The things you can imagine when someone says they’re in a dark place—that’s exactly where I was,” Al-Shaair said. “It was hard for me to see myself playing football again.”
The Incident
The hit that sidelined Al-Shaair and left Lawrence with a concussion triggered a dramatic chain of events. Lawrence displayed the “fencing response,” a physical reaction associated with traumatic brain injuries, and lay on the field for several minutes. The play escalated into a heated brawl, with Jaguars players confronting Al-Shaair.
As Al-Shaair was ejected, fans hurled insults, and Jaguars guard Brandon Scherff got involved in a verbal altercation with him. Texans teammate Will Anderson Jr. intervened, attempting to escort Al-Shaair off the field, but the chaos intensified when a fan threw a water bottle that struck Anderson’s helmet.
A Struggle to Move Forward
Al-Shaair accepted the suspension but took issue with the tone of the letter informing him of the punishment. NFL executive Jon Runyan criticized his “lack of sportsmanship and respect for the game,” remarks that deeply affected Al-Shaair.
“I needed to know how the league viewed me as a player,” Al-Shaair said. “I really had a moment of, there’s no way I can go out and play football again if this is how people that I work with view me,”
A meeting with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and league executives, including Runyan and Troy Vincent, helped provide clarity. Runyan explained that he directed his comments solely at Al-Shaair’s actions during the play and the aftermath, not his overall career.
Al-Shaair admitted to making mistakes, including removing his helmet and escalating the situation, but maintained that he did not intend his hit on Lawrence to cause harm.
Finding Redemption
The suspension left Al-Shaair in a state of despair. “I didn’t do anything for five days. It’s like a blur—I didn’t eat or go anywhere,” he said.
Encouragement came from an unexpected source: children from a foster care organization in Tennessee, whom Al-Shaair had met during his time with the Titans. Their messages of support gave him a renewed sense of purpose.
I got so many different messages like that, and I remember just sitting in my bed and thinking: ‘Man, I can either keep sitting here sad, sulking, and feeling like people misjudge me, or I can just do what I always do, which is try to be positive, spread positivity, and do the best I can,’ ” Al-Shaair said.
He booked a flight to Nashville and attended the same foster care event he had visited the year before. The warm reception from the children helped him begin to move past the negativity.
“I had so many people saying so many negative things and to see people that were happy to see me and were happy about my presence, I think that’s what kind of like snapped me back,” he said. “Like regardless of what’s being said, you know who you are and just lean into that and … from there just crawling myself out of this place.”
Ready to Return
Al-Shaair will return to the field Sunday when the AFC South champion Texans (9-7) face the Titans. His return couldn’t come at a better time for Houston, which has struggled with injuries and lost two straight games heading into the playoffs.
Head coach DeMeco Ryans expressed excitement about having Al-Shaair back.
“We’ve missed him over these past three weeks, just missed his presence, his leadership, missed his playmaking ability on the field,” Ryans said. “So, we’re excited to get him back out there and let him knock some of the rust off.”
As Al-Shaair looks to contribute in the Texans’ playoff push, his journey back from suspension serves as a reminder of the resilience needed to overcome challenges both on and off the field.
Related Content: Texans’ Azeez Al-Shaair Suspended 3 Games for Hit on Lawrence
This report used information from ESPN.
