- Pittman dove parallel to the ground in an attempt to catch and was hit by Kazee
- Kazee's agent has already stated that they plan to appeal the suspension
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Tom Brady has offered an alternate take on the decision to suspend Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee — instead suggesting he wasn't responsible for his big hit on Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.
Kazee has been suspended by the NFL for the remainder of the season after he was ejected for unnecessary roughness during the Steelers' loss to the Colts on Sunday following the hit on Pittman Jr.
The NFL announced he will be suspended without pay for repeated violations of rules designed to protect the health and safety of players.
Despite the fierce impact Kazee made with Pittman, Brady has instead argued that quarterbacks should be the ones punished for such actions rather than defensive players.
“No one likes to see players get hurt,” he commented under a Sportscenter Instagram post announcing Kazee's suspension. 'But hard knocks happen. QBs should not throw the ball in areas where they would expose their own teammates to these types of hits.
Tom Brady has offered an alternative take on the decision to suspend Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee (left)
Kazee was suspended for the rest of the season for delivering a huge hit to Michael Pittman
But Brady defended Kazee, saying quarterbacks should be the ones punished for big hits
Pittman dove out to try to make a catch before flying head-on into Kazee's shoulder
“Coaches need to coach better, QBs need to read coverage and throw the ball to the right places and defenders need to aim for the right hitting areas.
'It is downright wrong to always blame the defender. Better QB play needed!! It's not okay when QBs drop your WRs because of your bad decisions!”
Kazee was suspended for a day after being ejected from the Steelers' 30-13 loss to the Colts after delivering a big hit that knocked Pittman out of the game when the WR dove to try to make a catch.
As Pittman flew through the air fully extended, he went face-mask first into Kazee's shoulder and suffered a concussion when he dropped the ball but failed to complete the catch.
Had Kazee not lowered his shoulder, Pittman likely would not only have completed the catch and gained a huge yardage, but may also have flown directly into the safety's legs, seriously injuring the defender.
Still, Kazee's agent Ron Butler has already stated that he plans to appeal the season-long suspension CBS's Josina Anderson.
“I want to shed light on the situation of defensive players who are in a position where they feel like they have to play to keep their job, but who also have no intention of injuring,” Butler said.
'This is the highest number of fines I have received since I became a police officer. I understand they are trying to clean up the game, but at this point it's a bit extreme.
“As for the idea of Kazee receiving a harsher penalty for being a 'repeat offender', consider that most of his fines imposed this season have been overturned following appeals. So we have to be careful with that classification and that story.'
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin also criticized the suspension and rules blaming defenders
Brady made similar comments in 2021 that it should be up to QBs to protect WRs
Brady's comments were also similar to the comments he made in 2021 in that it was up to the quarterbacks to protect their wide receivers rather than the defenders to protect the offensive players.
“When you're a quarterback, you have to protect yourself and your players,” Brady said. “It shouldn't be your opponent's responsibility to protect you.”
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin also criticized the suspension after it was announced.
“Sometimes these days it's just pro football and how hard it is to operate, but the National Football League is very clear, man. Tomlin said.
'In those circumstances they place one hundred percent of the responsibility on the defender. It's a shame, but we understand.'