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After Azeez Al-Shaair knocked Trevor Lawrence out of Sunday's game, multiple Jacksonville Jaguars players stuck up for their quarterback, including tight end Evan Engram and defensive end Josh Hines-Allen. While Engram immediately was in Al-Shaair's face and pushed him after that play, following the game, the tight end cooled off. He spoke to reporters, via ESPN, and gave his thoughts about Al-Shaair's hit.
“It was a dirty hit,” Engram said. “Obviously, those hits are always in question. Trevor was going down and I saw it out of my peripheral [vision]. I got a pretty clear view of it, and in that moment, just [reacted on] instincts. It just didn't feel like a clean hit, so just go stick up for my quarterback.
“I mean, I saw him sliding and then I saw the hit, and then just, honestly, it just took over. I just knew it was wrong. It was just a dirty play, and you stick up for your guys.”
On the defensive side, Hines-Allen wasn't too big of a fan either. While he didn't confront Al-Shaair like Engram did, he still stuck up for his quarterback and made sure he was alright after the hit. Regardless, Hines-Allen echoed a similar sentiment via ESPN to his offensive counterpart.
Jaguars players show their support for Trevor Lawrence
“That was a dumb hit on his [Al-Shaair's] part,” Hines-Allen said. “At the end of the day he's just playing football, but again, the way we've changed the rules of how we play, we go over these things. We talk about these things. We know how to play football. A couple of years ago, that would've been a great hit, but now that wasn't a good play on him.
“I am not going to sit up there and say, does he deserve to get suspended or not? That's not my call at that moment. It wasn't smart.”
While their criticism is fair, it goes to show how meaningful Lawrence is to the team and the franchise. Since Engram went to Jacksonville, he had a breakout year in 2023, with the quarterback targeting him as a No. 1 option. Although Hines-Allen is on the defensive side, working against Lawrence has been pivotal for his progression as well.
Engram and Hines-Allen are not the only members of the team to speak out about the incident. Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson called out Al-Shaair for the dirty hit on Lawrence. Luckily for Jacksonville and the NFL community, Lawrence said he was doing better hours later, after being knocked out in the game. Unfortunately for them, they'll be without their franchise quarterback for an unknown period.
