On Monday, it was announced that the NFL had suspended Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee for the remainder of the 2023 season. So, see you next year, right? Well, not so fast, according to the latest update of this saga.
Hearing officer James Thrash has upheld Kazee's suspension for the rest of the 2023 regular season. But Thrash is also ruling that Kazee is eligible to return to the Steelers for the postseason, should they qualify, courtesy of the NFL's Senior Vice President of Football & International Communications Michael Signora.
Thrash's position is jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFL Players Association.
Kazee's suspension stems from an illegal hit he delivered on the Indianapolis Colts' Michael Pittman Jr. in Week 15's 30-13 Colts victory. As Pittman Jr. dove for a pass, Kazee arrive with a jarring hit to the head, immediately drawing multiple flags.
Kazee holding out hope?
In a letter to Kazee, NFL Vice President of Football Operations Joe Runyan laid out the reasoning behind the suspension. Specifically, Runyan faulted Kazee with “a forcible blow to the head/neck area of…Pittman Jr., who was in a defenseless posture.”
The letter also noted that Kazee had “an unobstructed path to your opponent and the illegal contact could have been avoided.” Kazee's actions were categorized as “flagrant.”
Wednesday's ruling will not have any impact on the Steelers as things stand heading into Week 16, however. The loss to the Colts knocked the Steelers out of playoff position. Pittsburgh is going to have a tough time qualifying after such a costly loss.
The Steelers currently have just a 7 percent chance to make the playoffs, per NFL.com. Even with a win on Saturday, their odds only improve to 14 percent. A loss would drop their odds to under a single percent.
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