Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair removed the name Wafaa Akila from his eyeblack during the team’s Week 2 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals. An NFL official spotted the marking after the game began and told Al-Shaair and the Texans it had to be removed. Al-Shaair then finished the contest without eyeblack.
The episode came after the NFL fined him $11,492 in Week 1 for displaying Hind Rajab’s name. The source described Rajab as a Palestinian girl who died in a bombing in Gaza. Al-Shaair did not challenge that penalty.
The NFL bars players from showing personal messages on game day, and it has warned players, including former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon and players with customized cleats, that they could be kept out of games if they failed to remove such messages. Arizona Cardinals defensive back Kei'Trel Clark was fined last week for writing “Glory B 2 God” on his eyeblack.
Al-Shaair, who is Muslim, was also fined $11,593 in January for the words “Stop the Genocide.” He said then that a human life could not be measured by $11,000 and described life as priceless. He signed a three-year, $54 million contract extension in April. Fox News was the source of the report.
