Trevor Lawrence.
Mike Carlson/Getty ImagesNFL coaches and players – past and present – gave their reactions to the illegal chant taken by the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback. Trevor Lawrence.
The game in question happened on Sunday, December 1, when Lawrence, 25, was hit in the head by a Houston Texans linebacker. Azezz Al-Shaair when the Jaguars' star skated onto the field.
Lawrence was concussed on the play, Al-Shaair, 27, was sent off and chaos ensued on the pitch, which led to more sending offs and chaos.
The suspension has not yet been issued by the NFL, but is expected.
Trevor Lawrence's wife, Marissa Mowry, has been his biggest cheerleader since they were kids – and he wouldn't have it any other way. “We met in the fifth grade, I can't say I know [she was The One] in fifth grade,” the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback exclusively told Us Weekly in February 2023. “We started dating […]
On Sunday evening, Lawrence gave an update on his condition.
“Thank you to everyone who has helped me / who has been praying for me,” he wrote about X. “I'm home and I feel better. It means a lot, thank you all 🙏🏻.”
Al-Shaair issued his own statement on Monday, December 2, in which he expressed his condolences to Lawrence.
“I didn't see him skating until late at night,” Al-Shaair wrote in an Instagram Story. “And it all happened in an instant. To Trevor I am truly sorry to you that it finally happened. Before the game we talked and I told you how nice it was to be back on the pitch and I wish you the best.”
Lawrence previously suffered a shoulder injury during Jacksonville's game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Nov. 3. Sunday's game against the Texans marked Lawrence's return to the lineup after missing the team's previous two games.
However, Al-Shaair suffered from unfortunate injuries from the dangerous nature of football.
“I have been playing this game seriously,” he wrote. “I never intended to hurt anyone and anyone who knows me knows that. My goal is to hit you hard and then I pray that you can get up and play the next game.”
He continued, “And when the game is over, go back home to them without getting hurt because it's not yours, it's just a competition! We are both trying to do the same thing to support our families!”
For more on how members of the NFL community reacted to Lawrence, keep scrolling.
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Pederson
After the game, Pederson, 56, said Al-Shaair's game was “a useless game in our league.”
Pederson did not say when he expects Lawrence to return to work, if at all this season.
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans
In a post-match press conference, Ryans, 40, said Al-Shaair's chant was “not something we coach.”
“It doesn't have to be who Azeez is,” added Ryans. “He is a smart player. A really great leader for us. We have seen his presence absent.”
Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram
Engram, 30, who was ejected from the game for his role in the on-field fight that took place after Al-Shaair's song, called it a “dirty game.”
“You just stick with your guys,” Engram said of the argument.
Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen
Although Hines-Allen admitted that Al-Shaair's song was “dumb,” she also gave him some grace.
“At the end of the day you're just playing football, but again, the way we've changed the rules the way we play, we're getting past these things,” Hines-Allen said after the game. “We talk about these things. We know how to play football. A few years ago, that would have been a good song, but now it wasn't a good play for him. “
He continued, “I'm not going to sit there and say, 'Does he deserve to be suspended or not?' It's not my call at that time. It wasn't smart.”
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III
Griffin, 34, who played eight seasons in the NFL, responded to the song on social media.
“We're praying for Trevor Lawrence,” the former ESPN analyst wrote about X. “There is no place in the game of football for dirty hits like this.”
ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr.
Van Natta Jr., 60, a senior writer for ESPN, requested that the letter be thrown at Al-Shaair.
“Azeez Al-Shaair, whose cheap shot hit Trevor Lawrence, should be banned for the whole season,” he wrote on X.
Former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho
Acho, 34, who appeared in 20 games for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013 and 2014, admitted Al-Shaair's song was “illegal” – but said there was more to the story.
“I don't think it was a dirty song,” Acho said Monday, December 2 on FS1 Institution. “Unlawful beatings, not dirty beatings.”
Acho added, “Dirty to me includes bad intentions. Al-Shaair said he greeted Trevor Lawrence before the game. I don't think it was malicious. If Al-Shaair really wanted to get dirty, he would have taken his own lead [head] he hit him in the middle [head].”
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