Azeez Al-Shaair, Houston Texans
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Azeez Al-Shaair #0 of the Houston Texans reacts against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The NFL has levied its decision on Houston Texans team captain and veteran linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair.
Al-Shaair drew attention and ire from fans of the Tennessee Titans, the Texans’ Week 4 opponent, after his hit on quarterback and No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward along the sideline on a third-down conversion attempt.
Despite not drawing any repercussions at the time, Al-Shaair has indeed heard from the league.
Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair Pays Price for Hit on Cam Ward
Azeez Al-Shaair, Cam Ward, Houston Texans
GettyCam Ward #1 of the Tennessee Titans passes under pressure from Azeez Al-Shaair #0 of the Houston Texans.
“The NFL fined #Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair $17,389 for roughing the passer — a blow to #Titans QB Cam Ward’s head/neck area last week,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on x on October 4. “No flag was thrown.”
Fan reactions to the play were not kind to Al-Shaair, whose reputation preceded him.
“No penalty here,” wrote the fan who initially posted the video that Pelissero quoted. “Thanks NFL Officiating.”
“Refs missed this blatant late/dirty hit on #Titans QB Cam Ward,” The Draft Network’s Justin Melo said in a post on X during the game, which the Texans won 26-0. “Noted dirty player Azeez Al-Shaair. Incredible this wasn’t called.”
Stadium Rant’s Clint Goss compared Al-Shaair to former Cincinnati Bengals LB Vontaze Burfict.
Burfict ran afoul of the league many times during his playing career. Unfortunately for the Texans, so has Al-Shaair.
Azeez Al-Shaair Plays Game the ‘Right Way’
Azeez Al-Shaair, Houston Texans
GettyAzeez Al-Shaair #0 of the Houston Texans reacts against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Texans boast about their “swarm mentality,” and Al-Shaair embodies that, sometimes to his own and the team’s detriment. He has insisted that he is not a dirty player before facing the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3, but also acknowledged that he plays hard.
Al-Shaair received a three-game suspension for a hit to Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence in 2024. The QB believed it was accidental, but he missed the rest of the 2024 season.
Al-Shaair, who said he apologized to Lawrence, has had several other incidents as well.
It is now anticipated that Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair will be suspended for the hit that he delivered Sunday to Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence. The only question is for how long. pic.twitter.com/P8phFecS02
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 2, 2024
Al-Shaair was fined $338,233 for “conduct detrimental” after that hit.
“I’m gonna go out there and do what I’ve done my entire career: play as hard as I can. Anybody who got the ball in the hand, that’s what I’m trying to hit. And just do my job,” Al-Shaair told reporters in September before being asked if the context would affect him in any way. “Just try to hit him as hard as I can do my job like I always do. It’s really nothing different just like, you know, I it’s definitely a personal thing in a way, cuz just about the credibility of my name. But you know, I guess that’s more just how I attacked the whole season.
“It was a league-wide thing that they tried to make me out to be somebody that I wasn’t. So, I think for me, I’ve just kind of been trying to prove a point every single week of who I am. And I play hard, but I play the game the right way. So, that’s just why I’m gonna keep doing.”
NFL in Azeez Al-Shaair’s Pockets
Azeez Al-Shaair, Houston Texans
GettyAzeez Al-Shaair #0 of the Houston Texans reacts against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
According to Spotrac, the NFL has now fined Al-Shaair $424,110. He has been fined for seven infractions in seven different games, all during the 2023, 2024, and, now, 2025 seasons.
Al-Shaair received four fines just in 2024, his first season with the Texans.
A two-time team captain for the Texans, Al-Shaair is signed through 2026 on a three-year, $34 million contract. The Texans can cut him next offseason, saving themselves $11.5 million with $3.7 million in dead money in 2026, per Spotrac.
The Texans would have another $9 million in dead money on their books in 2027, though, with void years adding complexity to the situation, along with Al-Shaair being a leader on the team.