Tom Brady slams NFL for suspending Damontae Kazee, blames Gardner Minshew

Retired NFL quarterback Tom Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion, lashed out at the league on Monday after Pittsburgh Steelers safety Damontae Kazee received a suspension for his brutal tackle on Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. in Week 15 of the 2023 season.

Brady, 47, blamed Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew for putting Pittman Jr. in an unsafe position with his throw. The former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB believes defenders should not be the only players held responsible for such tackles.

"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," Brady commented on SportsCenter's Instagram post announcing the suspension. "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 [defensive] 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, 30, is now suspended for the remaining three games of the regular season due to repeated violations of unnecessary roughness and Brady keeps getting proved right. He has recently been saying that "mediocre" quarterback play and current NFL rules are key reasons for the countless injuries.

Gardner Minshew accepts blame for Michael Pittman Jr. hit

Minshew, 27, did not shy away from his fair share of blame after throwing Pittman Jr. into an unsafe position. The Colts receiver had to leap high into the air to attempt the catch. His neck whipped backwards when Kazee tackled him.

"Yeah, it's never ideal. You don't want that," Minshew said. "I don't think there's any malicious intent or anything. I think that's sometimes how the game goes.

"I wish I wouldn't have put Pitt in that position, honestly. So you always try to do your best to protect your guys, but there's sometimes where unfortunately things just happen in the game."

Pittman Jr., 26, did not return to the Colts' 30-13 home win over the Steelers after the tackle. He entered concussion protocol, but later tweeted that everything is "all good."