Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans defended Azeez Al-Shaair after the linebacker was ejected from Sunday’s game for throwing a late hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Oftentimes, former NFL players fondly reminisce about their days in the league when player safety wasn’t necessarily at the top of mind and big hits weren’t always penalized. That wasn’t the case for many of them after Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair appeared to knock out Trevor Lawrence with a late hit as the Jaguars quarterback was giving himself up on a slide.

Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair apologized Monday for his brutal hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence amid reports that a suspension is likely coming from the NFL. Al-Shaair was ejected from Sunday's win over the Jaguars after he delivered a blow to the head and neck of Lawrence,