Steelers safety Damontae Kazee suspended for rest of season for hit on Colts WR Michael Pittman

Safety Damontae Kazee’s hit on Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman on Saturday resulted in a suspension without pay for the final three games of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season — and any potential playoff contests.

Citing “repeated violations of playing rules intended to protect the health and safety of players,” the NFL announced the suspension Monday afternoon, two days after Kazee was ejected in the second quarter for his hit on Pittman that knocked the Colts receiver from the game with a concussion.

Kazee will forfeit $208,333 in salary for the remainder of the regular season. His base salary is $1.25 million this year; he is signed for $3 million for 2024.

Kazee’s agent, Ronald Turner, told TribLive that Kazee will appeal the suspension. The appeal would be heard by former NFL players Derrick Brooks or James Thrash, the hearing officers jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFL Players’ Association.

NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan suspended Kazee for violating Rule 12, Section 2, Article 9 (b)(1) of the league’s rulebook. The rule says a foul is warranted if a player “forcibly hits the defenseless player’s head or neck area with the helmet, facemask, forearm, or shoulder, even if the initial contact is lower than the player’s neck, and regardless of whether the defensive player also uses his arms to tackle the defenseless player by encircling or grasping him.”

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Runyan addressed the incident in a letter to Kazee, writing that “you were involved in a play that the League considers a serious violation of the playing rules. The video of the play shows that you delivered a forcible blow to the head/neck area of Colts’ receiver Michael Pittman Jr., who was in a defenseless posture. You had an unobstructed path to your opponent and the illegal contact could have been avoided.”

Runyan called Kazee’s actions “flagrant.”

Kazee had been fined five times for unnecessary roughness calls and other violations earlier this season. He was fined for hits in Weeks 2, 7, 8 and 12. He was fined twice for hits in Week 8. Those fines totaled $59,030.

“It was just unfortunate,” coach Mike Tomlin said about the hit on Pittman. “He is not a dirty player. He does not aspire to do some of the things that came to light under those circumstances. Sometimes it’s just professional football today and how difficult it is to operate. The National Football League is really clear. They put 100% of the onus on the defender in those circumstances. It’s unfortunate, but we understand it.”

The suspension is the longest in the NFL for on-field conduct involving a helmet-to-helmet hit since 2019, when Oakland Raiders and former Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict was suspended in September for the rest of the season. He missed the final 10 games of that season.

Wrote Runyan to Kazee:

“When players violate the rules intended to protect player safety on a repeated basis, and particularly when the violations carry with them a significant risk of injury to an opposing player, it is appropriate to impose substantially greater penalties.”

With Kazee suspended and the Steelers without All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick because of a knee injury, the Steelers will be thin at the two safety positions when they face the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday. Veteran special teams captain Miles Killebrew and former practice squad player Trenton Thompson are the only safeties on the 53-man roster. Cornerback Patrick Peterson moved to safety after Kazee and Fitzpatrick exited the game on consecutive plays.

Tomlin said Elijah Riley, who is on injured reserve with an ankle injury, is a possible reinforcement. He added that veteran Eric Rowe could be elevated from the practice squad. Rowe and Henry Black are the two safeties on the practice squad.