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Aaron Rodgers is a man of many opinions, including his latest take on Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair. After Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence suffered a serious head injury at the hands of Al-Shaair, it sparked controversy from Lawrence's teammates, as well as Al-Shaair's. Regardless, Rodgers spoke on the Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday and explained his stance on the Texans linebacker's hit.
“It’s tough to play defense, there should be some onus on the quarterback to slide early,” Rodgers said. “We’re pushing it because they like to market where you begin your slide so if it’s close to first down yardage you're always trying to push the envelope but you’ve got to understand what’s happening on the other side.
“Now you don’t expect to maybe get smacked but maybe they should ease the rules a little bit on some of that stuff to deter some of the late slides. Again, I don’t think that Azeez is a dirty player, look at his rap sheet of fines in the league. We’re talking about late hits, fighting, face mask, and roughing the passer. I don’t think that’s egregious.”
Aaron Rodgers gives Texans' Azeez Al-Shaair the benefit of the doubt
While Al-Shaair's hit was a dirty one, he doesn't have the reputation as a dirty player. Although he's a physical player, the linebackers job is to make a tackle, in whatever position they're in. Lawrence was sliding when Al-Shaair made the hit. However, Rodgers' point draws comparison to previous plays where the defender didn't make a play.
For example, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes faked running out of bounds. This caused the San Francisco 49ers to hesitate because they didn’t want to draw a penalty hitting him out of bounds. In the college game, former Pittsburgh football quarterback Kenny Pickett pulled off a fake quarterback slide that led to him scoring a touchdown. This would be an example of why the defender has to make sure the QB is actually sliding.
Those two instances aside, Rodgers is a quarterback and understands the rules benefiting the signal-caller. Still, he believes in a fair and balanced game. After all, he played against Al-Shaair for two seasons when Rodgers was with the Green Bay Packers. Even though there's controversy on what Rodgers is saying, he's trying to illustrate a point for both sides. It doesn't take away from Al-Shaair's three-game suspension enforced by the NFL on Tuesday.
