The NFL has suspended Damontae Kazee, the safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers, for the remainder of the season, with no pay.
Steelers safety Damontae Kazee has been handed a suspension without pay for the rest of the regular NFL season and potential postseason games due to “repeated violations of playing rules aimed at safeguarding the health and safety of players,” according to a statement by the league on Monday.
This disciplinary action follows Kazee’s ejection from the recent 30-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. During the game, he delivered a forceful hit on defenseless wide receiver Michael Pittman, who suffered a concussion and was ruled out of the match.
NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan cited the incident as a serious violation of playing rules, emphasizing that Kazee had an unobstructed path to his opponent and the illegal contact could have been avoided.
The league’s decision also took into account Kazee’s history of rule violations, considering them a contributing factor to the severity of the suspension. The statement mentioned that when players repeatedly breach rules designed to protect player safety, especially when there is a significant risk of injury to an opponent, it is justified to impose more substantial penalties.
Kazee, in his second season with the Steelers, has the option to appeal the suspension, with the appeal process overseen by hearing officers jointly appointed by the NFL and NFLPA. The safety, who signed a two-year deal in March, has a past suspension from September for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy. Throughout his career with the Atlanta Falcons, Dallas Cowboys, and the Steelers, Kazee has accumulated 16 interceptions in 92 games, including 62 starts.
