Texans Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair Brings Back His Free Palestine Cleats

Azeez Al-Shaair got into a lot of trouble last year for his cheap-shot hit that knocked Trevor Lawrence out for the season and put the Houston Texans linebacker on NFL suspension. But it was his choice of cleats that also set some people off.

The Free Palestine Cleats.

Well, they're back.

Azeez Al-Shaair Wearing Controversial Cleats

Al-Shaair met with reporters for about 10 minutes after the Texans' second practice of minicamp on Thursday. And he was wearing the cleats at the press conference after wearing them to practice.

The cleats, for the uninitiated, include statistics of Palestinians allegedly killed by Israel. They make no mention of the Israelis killed by Palestinians and other Muslim terrorists, particularly on Oct. 7, 2023.

Before we keep going, in the interest of full transparency, I've got dogs in the fight on the Oct. 7 issue. And I don't abide terrorists.

But my friendships have nothing to do with the fact those shoes fed the backlash Al-Shaair got from wide swaths of the public last year.

The player claimed the backlash was racist. 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Azeez Al-Shaair of the Houston Texans warms up prior to an NFL football AFC divisional playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on January 18, 2025.  (Photo by Perry Knotts/Getty Images)

Azeez Al-Shaair Claimed Racism

And all the while Al-Shaair embraced being the villain (his word) as the saga lasted much of December.

One assumes that's what he was doing again on Thursday. I mean, the dude definitely has a pick of any number of cleats he can wear on a random practice day.

But he chose those on the day he was scheduled to speak with reporters.

At least one reporter noticed the linebacker's gear and posted it on social media. But no one asked the player about the shoes.

NFL Should Ban Al-Shaair?

Social media didn't seem to care. At least one influencer, who happens to be Lebanese, suggested Al-Shaair should be banned from the NFL for simply wearing those cleats.

So where do I come down on this whole matter?

I love America. That's where I land.

And one of the reasons for that is freedom of expression. If Al-Shaair wants to wear Free Palestine cleats, that's his call personally. If he wants to wear free all the hamburgers from being eaten, that's his call.

If we join calls to ban Free Palestine cleats, we'd have to agree with bans on the Free Cuba cleats (if only), and the Free New York cleats (might become necessary after the mayoral election).

Speech limited for one often leads to speech limited for all.

So, you don't have to love the Free Palestine gear. That's your right. But you probably should accept that Al-Shaair wears it. Because that's his right.