Tom Brady blasts the Colts’ quarterback instead of Damontae Kazee for a hard hit on Michael Pittman Jr… despite the Steelers’ safety being suspended for the rest of the season for a tackle.
Tom Brady has weighed in on the decision to suspend Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee, claiming he was not to fault for his massive hit on Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.
The NFL suspended Kazee for the rest of the season after he was dismissed during the Steelers’ loss to the Colts on Sunday for unnecessary roughness after the hit on Pittman Jr.
The NFL said that he will be suspended indefinitely for numerous infractions of rules designed to protect players’ health and safety.
Despite Kazee’s strong influence on Pittman, Brady has maintained that quarterbacks should be fined for such actions rather than defensive players.
‘Nobody enjoys seeing guys get wounded,’ he commented on Sportscenter’s Instagram post announcing Kazee’s ban. ‘But bad things happen. QBs should not pass the ball in areas that expose their teammates to these types of hits.
‘Coaches need to coach better, QBs needs to read coverages and throw the ball to the right places and defenders should aim for the right hitting areas.
‘To put the blame on the defense player all the time is just flat out wrong. Need better QB play!! It’s not OK QBs to get your WRs hit because of your bad decisions!
Kazee was suspended a day after he was dismissed from the Steelers’ 30-13 loss to the Colts for delivering a heavy blow that knocked Pittman out of the game when the WR dived to try to grab.
Pittman went facemask first into Kazee’s shoulder as he flew through the air completely stretched out, sustaining a concussion as he dropped the ball and failed to complete the grab.
Had Kazee not lowered his shoulder, Pittman would not only have completed the grab for a big gain of yardage, but he would also have flown directly into the safeties legs, causing catastrophic injury to the defender.
According to CBS’s Josina Anderson, Kazee’s agent Ron Butler has already announced that he intends to fight the season-long punishment.
‘I want to shed attention on the situation of defensive players who feel obligated to make plays in order to keep their job but also not intending to injure,’ Butler said.
‘This is the most fines I’ve dealt with in my career as an agent. I understand they’re attempting to clean up the game, but this is going too far.
‘As for the notion of Kazee receiving a harsher punishment for being a ‘repeat violator’ you have to remember most of his fines that were assessed this season got rescinded after appeal. So we have to be careful about that classification and narrative.’
Brady’s comments were also similar to ones he made back in 2021 that it was on quarterbacks to protect their wide receivers rather than on defenders to protect the offensive players.
‘If you’re a quarterback, you’ve gotta protect yourself and your players,’ said Brady. ‘It shouldn’t be the responsibility of your opponent to protect you.’
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin also criticized the suspension after it was announced.
‘Sometimes it’s just professional football today, and how difficult it is to operate, but the National Football League is really clear, man. said Tomlin.
‘They put a hundred percent of the onus on the defender in those circumstances. It’s unfortunate, but we understand it.’
