NFL Upholds Damontae Kazee of the Steelers’ Suspension; He Can Playoffs
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Michael Signora, senior vice president of football and international relations for the NFL, stated that James Thrash, the hearing officer for Damontae Kazee’s suspension appeal, affirmed the season-long suspension for the safety of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Thrash, who was chosen by the NFLPA and the league together, did decide that Kazee may play again if Pittsburgh made it to the postseason.
After Kazee repeatedly violated the player safety rules, NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan first suspended him without pay for the final three games of the season.
The final straw was a hit on Saturday against Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. that left him concussed. Kazee was flagged and ejected.
Runyon ruled that Kazee violated the rule that stipulates it’s an illegal hit if a player “forcibly hits the defenseless player’s head or neck area with the helmet, face mask, forearm or shoulder, even if the initial contact is lower than the player’s neck, and regardless of whether the defensive player also uses his arms to tackle the defenseless player by encircling or grasping him.”
He added that the hit could have been avoided and called the contact “flagrant.”
Kazee’s suspension was met with a mixed response:
The 30-year-old Kazee has already paid fines totaling $59,030 for five other instances of needless roughness penalties this season, according to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. Runyon claimed that these fines were a contributing factor in Kazee’s ban. He will lose almost $208,000 if he misses the last three games of the season.
During his 14 appearances (nine starts) this season, he has recorded 61 tackles, two interceptions, three passes defensed, and two fumble recoveries for the Steelers.
