Texans' DeMeco Ryans suggests Trevor Lawrence is guilty of aggravated assault, says Jags players overreacted.
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans suggested on Monday that Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Trevor Lawrence was at fault for a big hit from linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair during a weekend game.
Al-Shaair hit Lawrence in the head and neck as Lawrence slipped during the protest. Ryans told reporters that the organization stands behind Al-Shaair after the song and the criticism it received. The coach did not think that Al-Shaair was the only one at fault.
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Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans answers questions from reporters after an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024 in Jacksonville, Florida. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Ryans called Lawrence's song “unfortunate.”
“But it's also — it's doubled, right? I mean a lot of quarterbacks in this day and age. They're trying to take advantage of the rule where they slip late, and they're trying to get an extra yard, and now you're ready. quarterback, a lot of the responsibility is on the quarterback whether he's on the sideline or on the quarterback, you don't know what the guy's thinking,” Ryans said. “You don't know if a guy gets up and keeps running, you don't know, then you get a slide late, and – you hit the guy.
“Unfortunately Trevor got hurt. I hope Trevor is OK, but again, if we slide, we have to go down. If we go out of bounds, we go out of bounds and that rule is there to protect quarterbacks, and we want our quarterbacks to be safe in the league, so we have to be safe if we slip, make sure we keep our heads down everything is Azeez – he hits the guy, but their sideline overreacts, and it turns a melee.
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, #16, slides down the field in front of Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, #0, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, on Dec. 1, 2024. (Photos by Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn)
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“It wasn't our guys. Their team took it up a notch, pushed our guy, pulled our guy to the side, so that's not necessary on the right side. We have to be better on the side as well, with both teams.”
Ryans suggested that most of the onus was on the defender to somehow miss the sliding quarterback in bang-bang situations.
“I think the only thing that can be done is that you have to look at all sides, and there is no need to overreact because I think the boy is getting hurt,” he said. “We're not trying to hurt anyone on purpose. I think there's an overreaction when someone gets hurt, but we just have to look at it from every angle.”
Al-Shaair apologized for Lawrence's song and understood why Jaguars players reacted the way they did.
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans reacts on the play against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024 in Jacksonville, Florida. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
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ESPN reported that the NFL is expected to suspend Al-Shaair.
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