Steelers safety Damontae Kazee suspended for remainder of season following hit on Colts' Michael Pittman
PITTSBURGH (KDKA/AP) - The NFL announced that Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee was suspended without pay for the remainder of the NFL season following the hit Indianapolis Colts receiver Michael Pittman Jr.
"When players violate the rules intended to protect player safety on a repeated basis, and particularly when the violations carry with them a significant risk of injury to an opposing player, it is appropriate to impose substantially greater penalties," NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan said in a letter to Kazee.
Damontae Kazee's Fine History
This isn't the first time Kazee faced discipline at the NFL level this season. He's been fined five times in the 2023 season, most recently against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12 for a hit on Bengals' tight end Irv Smith Jr.
He was hit with two different fines in Week 8, both for unnecessary roughness, another fine in Week 7 and his first infraction of the 2023 campaign in Week 2.
Kazee was ejected midway through the second quarter of Saturday's game at Indianapolis for a hard hit on Pittman Jr., who suffered a concussion on the play.
Kazee was flagged for unnecessary roughness after he launched his shoulder into Pittman, who was trying to make a diving catch.
Pittman's teammates immediately surrounded him and some players on both teams took knees as trainers tended to him. He walked off the field after spending a few minutes on the ground. The Colts announced later in the quarter that Pittman had a concussion and would not return.
Pittman, the Colts' leading receiver, had four catches for 78 yards before the hit, giving him 99 receptions for 1,063 yards this season. He fell four catches short of breaking Marvin Harrison's franchise record for consecutive games with eight or more receptions (six).
Tom Brady shows supports for Damontae Kazee
Tom Brady is showing support for Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee after he was suspended for the remainder of the regular season for violating player safety rules.
The NFL legend who spent the majority of his career with the New England Patriots went to Instagram on Monday to share his feelings on the suspension, which came after Kazee's violent hit on Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. during Saturday's matchup.
"To put the blame on the defense player all the time is just flat out wrong," Brady said in the Instagram comments section.
Brady, who added that no one likes seeing players get injured, said he believes quarterbacks "should not be throwing the ball in areas where they are exposing their own teammates to these types of hits."
Pittman left the game in the second quarter after laying out to make a catch on a pass from Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew. Kazee hit Pittman in the head as he was diving to catch the pass.
"Need better QB play!! It's not OK QBs to get your WRs hit because of your bad decisions!" Brady commented.
J.J. Watt, the brother of Steelers star T.J. Watt, cosigned Brady's comments, posting "🙏" underneath Brady's thoughts.
