Moments after Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence laid motionless on the turf after taking a hit from Texans defensive back Azeez Al-Shaair, the teams engaged in a huge brawl that spilled onto the sideline.
Lawrence was running for a first down and slid to give himself up on the play. Al-Shaair did not pull up and made a vicious hit to the upper body and helmet of the quarterback.
As soon as the hit was delivered, tight end Evan Engram is the first to start shoving Al-Shaair, with several others from both teams involved in the scrum seconds later.
Lawrence was eventually carted off and alert, while Al-Shaair was ejected from the game.
Lawrence was ruled out of the game soon after with a concussion with Mac Jones replacing him at quarterback.
Jacksonville’s Jarrian Jones was also ejected from the game, while Engram was assessed a 15-yard penalty for being the first to engage Al-Shaair in a fight.
Players from the Texans and Jaguars brawled after Trevor Lawrence was hit by Aziz Al-Shaair
Lawrence gave himself up on the play, only to be hit by Al-Shaair, instigating the massive brawl
Al-Shaair needed to be removed from the field by stadium security and Texans’ personnel after fans at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville pelted him with garbage.
Before leaving the field, Al-Shaair got into a shouting match with Jaguars offensive lineman Brandon Scherff that nearly led to a second brawl.
‘Trevor Lawrence suffered a significant traumatic brain injury (#TBI) here. He shows a clear “fencing response”, which means he is knocked out with a #concussion & deeper parts of his brain are malfunctioning. Wishing him the best,’ said Chris Nowinski, founder of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, on social media.
Many online have given kudos to Engram for sticking up for his teammate, regardless of consequence.
Meanwhile. others have started to suggest the league would come down heavily on Al-Shaair, possibly suspending him for the rest of the season to send a message to the rest of the league about wanting that type of hit out of the game.
Jacksonville’s Evan Engram was the first to engage Al-Shaair after the game, starting the brawl
Lawrence was alert and driven off the field by Jaguars medical personnel after taking the hit
The brawl is the latest in a weekend filled with gridiron fights.
During Saturday’s slate of college football, fights happened during the clashes between Michigan-Ohio State, Auburn-Alabama, Missouri-Arkansas, Florida-Florida State, and a few others.
For Michigan-Ohio State, Florida-Florida State, and North Carolina-North Carolina State, fights were started after the winning road team planted a flag at midfield of their opponents’ field.
The uptick in on-field gridiron fights coincides with the last week of the regular season for college football, with many teams playing their biggest rivals.
During the Ohio State-Michigan game, some players were pepper sprayed to stop players from throwing punches at each other.
The college football brawls happened also in the backdrop of the first season of the 12-team College Football Playoff, with a few brawls happening in games with postseason implications.
In the NFL’s case, more eyeballs are on the product than usual this weekend due to it being Thanksgiving week.
The NFL has zeroed in on this weekend as one of its biggest to draw in new fans thanks to the holiday. Now, Al-Shaarir’s hit happens in front of a nationwide audience.
Earlier Sunday, Washington Commanders offensive lineman Sam Cosmi and Tennessee defender Jeffery Simmons got into a scuffle that lasted a few seconds.
This is not the first controversial action from Al-Shaair this season. During the Texans’ game against the Bears in September, he punched Roschon Johnson, who wasn’t even in the game at the time of another sideline confrontation.
