No punishment was brought as a result of the hit that has sidelined C.J. Stroud for the Houston Texans’ Week 10 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair has run afoul of the league office again, and it will cost him.
An infraction Al-Shaair committed in Week 9 against the Denver Broncos has drawn the NFL’s attention in a bad way. For Al-Shaair, it is the latest in an extensive history.
He is not the only Texans player paying a price, either.
No Penalty for Broncos CB on C.J. Stroud Hit
GettyKris Abrams-Draine #31 of the Denver Broncos tackles C.J. Stroud #7 of the Houston Texans.
Stroud suffered a concussion after hitting his head on the turf during a tackle by Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine as the Texans’ QB slid. Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans criticized the lack of a call postgame.
“C.J. scrambled. Of course, he tried to – he slid, and the guy you know came up and hit him. As I see, it’s unnecessary roughness,” Ryans said after the game on November 2. “He hit the quarterback when he’s sliding and giving himself up. If I’m incorrect on the rule, I’ve seen that happen multiple times, and with our guys, and we get the penalty. But for some reason, it just didn’t happen there.”
He later offered pointed remarks in the week of preparation that followed.
“It was it’s a tough play,” Ryans told reporters on November 3. “Quarterback is sliding. I thought the quarterbacks are protected when they slide. But what I’m learning is, if you hit them, don’t hit them in the head or neck area. They slide, you hit them in the chest, and that’s just fine. So, that’s what I learned.”
The lack of a fine is in line with Abrams-Draine not drawing a flag during the game, but surely does not sit well with Ryans and Co.
Plays do not need to draw flags for players to receive fines, either, as the Texans found out.
Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair Draws Fine Over Broncos Game
GettyAzeez Al-Shaair #0 of the Houston Texans reacts after a tackle against the Denver Broncos.
Al-Shaair received a $17,389 fine for “unnecessary roughness” after a “hit on a defenseless player,” J.K. Dobbins, during the Texans’ 18-15 loss to the Broncos, per the NFL’s Football Operations portal on November 19.
The hit occurred during the fourth quarter on a pass play that Al-Shaair stopped for a 2-yard loss. It did not draw a flag during the contest.
Al-Shaair has a reputation for toeing the line between physical and excessiveness.
He received an identical $17,389 fine for a hit to the head of Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward in Week 4 and narrowly avoided another in Week 7 against the Seattle Seahawks and Sam Darnold. Texans cornerback Derek Stingley was the only one fined in that contest.
Al-Shaair was notably suspended and lambasted by the league over a hit delivered to Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence that ended the QB’s 2024 season early.
Al-Shaair and the Texans host Lawrence and the Jaguars in Week 10.
Broncos-Texans Proved Costly
GettyXavier Hutchinson #19 of the Houston Texans runs onto the field before a game against the Denver Broncos.
Notably, there were two unnecessary roughness calls during the game, neither so much as involving Al-Shaair, both on the Broncos. Broncos safety Brandon Jones and long snapper Mitchell Fraboni were both flagged during the game.
Neither player was fined.
However, Texans wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson was fined $5,949 for “unsportsmanlike conduct” after “taunting” Jones on a deep pass from Davis Mills in the third quarter.
Notably, Mills is stepping in for Stroud in Week 10 against the Jaguars, one of two teams against whom the former third-round draft pick (2021) has a winning record as a starter during his career.
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