The NFL announced Monday that it suspended Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Damontae Kazee without pay for the rest of the season following his hit on Michael Pittman Jr. during last weekend's game against the Indianapolis Colts. But the greatest quarterback of all time believes the NFL is allocating blame all wrong.
In a comment on the Instagram post of SportsCenter about the hit — in which Pittman Jr. suffered a concussion — and ensuing suspension, Tom Brady went off on fellow quarterbacks.
Here are Tom Brady?s thoughts on the suspension of Damontae Kazee:
?It?s not OK QBs to get your WRs hit because of your bad decisions!? ?? pic.twitter.com/iYOmh0uLiR
— Pats Buzz (@PatsBuzz) December 18, 2023
Brady wrote, "Nobody likes seeing players get hurt. But hard hits happen. QBs should not be throwing the ball in areas where they are exposing their own 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!"
The NFL noted that Kazee's suspension was the result of repeated offenses that "carry with them a significant risk of injury to an opposing player." But Brady still believes Kazee — or any other defender — is not at fault for the hits that defenseless receivers sustain.
Instead, Brady believes it's the job of quarterbacks to, well, play better — to make throws that don't force receivers to sacrifice their bodies in order to secure the catch.
This isn't the first time we've seen Brady sympathize with NFL defenders. During an appearance on the "Stephen A. Smith Show" podcast last month, Brady said, "I look at a lot of players like Ray Lewis and Rodney Harrison and Ronnie Lott and guys that impacted the game in a certain way — and every hit they would have made would have been a penalty. You hear coaches complaining about their own player being tackled and not necessarily — why don't they talk to their player about how to protect himself?"
Brady continued, saying, "Offensive players need to protect themselves. It's not up to a defensive player to protect an offensive player. ... I think a lot of the way that the rules have come into play have allowed this; you can essentially play carefree and then if anyone hits you hard, there's a penalty."
Brady's sentiment has been echoed by many fans, players and coaches alike, all of whom believe a change must be made to the NFL's current stance on hits against defenseless receivers.
Of course, it's much easier to criticize the powers that be — and tell peers to "play better" — than offer practical solutions to the NFL's player safety issues.
