On Monday, Houston head coach DeMeco Ryans addressed the hit by Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair that concussed Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence on Sunday.
He positioned blame on Lawrence. And he believes that Jaguars gamers overreacted after they responded to the hit.
Ryans spoke concerning the hit throughout his information convention Monday afternoon.
Wow.
HC Demeco Ryans says that Trevor Lawrence is accountable for his gamers low-cost shot.
The Texans slowly turning into probably the most hated crew within the league 😳
— NFL Notifications (@NFLNotify) December 3, 2024
“We stand behind Azeez and all the things that got here from that,” Ryans stated. “In fact the unlucky hit on a quarterback. Nevertheless it’s two-fold. A whole lot of the quarterbacks at the moment, they attempt to benefit from the rule the place they slide late and so they attempt to get an additional yard.
“Now, you are a defender, and lots of onus is on the defender. Whether or not it is on the sideline or it is on the quarterback, you do not know what a man is considering. You do not know if a man’s staying up and he is persevering with to run. You do not know. And also you get a late slide and also you hit the man.
“Unlucky that Trevor bought harm. We hope Trevor’s OK. But in addition, if we’re sliding, it’s a must to get down.”
Here is the hit in full pace:
And once more in gradual movement:
Lawrence initiated his slide as Al-Shaair braced for the deal with. Al-Shaair then launched himself head first towards Lawrence after Lawrence had given himself up. The hit left Lawrence mendacity dazed on the sphere and out of the sport with a concussion. It additionally sparked a brawl as Jaguars gamers responded in sort to Al-Shaair’s hit.
Ryans additionally has an issue with this.
“Your complete factor is, Azeez hits the man, however their sideline overreacts, and it turns right into a melee,” Ryans stated. “It wasn’t our guys. Their crew overreacted, pushed our man, dragging our man to the sideline. In order that’s uncalled for on that aspect. We have now to be higher on the sideline as properly with each groups.”
The NFL doled out ejections for each groups on Sunday. Al-Shaair bought tossed for the hit that sparked all of it. Jaguars cornerback Jarrian Jones was ejected for his position within the ensuing melee.
Earlier Monday, Al-Shaair issued a press release apologizing for injuring Lawrence and declaring that “I might by no means wish to see any participant harm due to a success I placed on them particularly one which’s deemed ‘late’ or ‘pointless.’” The quote marks round “late” and “pointless” are his personal.
The subsequent voice to weigh in is predicted to be the NFL’s amid calls handy out substantial self-discipline for the hit.
