Eight months after fining Azeez Al-Shaair for writing “Stop the Genocide” on his eye black, the NFL has punished the Houston Texans linebacker again for another unapproved message.
Al-Shaair was fined $11,492 after writing “Hind Rajab” beneath his eyes during Sunday’s 36-31 season-opening loss to the Buffalo Bills. He continued wearing the eye black during postgame interviews.
Rajab was a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed alongside six relatives in Gaza City in January 2024 after the family’s vehicle came under fire from Israeli forces. Her death became a symbol of Palestinian suffering, and the Israeli military opened a criminal investigation into the incident in August.
The NFL cited Rule 6, Section 4, Article 8, which prohibits players from displaying personal messages on game days without advance approval from the league. The restriction applies from pregame warmups through postgame interviews.
The rule is based on authorization rather than the position expressed. The NFL previously fined 49ers star Nick Bosa for displaying a “Make America Great Again” hat during a televised postgame interview.
Al-Shaair received an $11,593 fine in January for his earlier Gaza message. He wore the same eye black during warmups the following week but removed it after being warned that he could be pulled from the game.
Following the first penalty, Al-Shaair said his concern for people dying overseas was “bigger than me” and that he wanted to use his platform to keep attention on their suffering.
The latest fine is unlikely to create much financial strain for a player who signed a three-year, $54 million extension containing a $14 million signing bonus. Al-Shaair reportedly does not plan to appeal.
The dollar amount may be relatively small. The repeat offense shows that Al-Shaair was willing to accept the consequences to deliver his message.
