HOUSTON – Azeez Al-Shaair knew something was wrong with him. Sweating profusely at his home, he endured a sleepless night that not even Nyquil would fix.
Chills ensued and body aches. His routine of rest and deep thoughts before a game was being disrupted and Al-Shaair didn’t know what was the cause behind his sudden illness that involved extreme flu symptoms.
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By kickoff, the 6-foot-2, 232-pound Texans veteran linebacker had lost 10 pounds.
“I felt kind of weird,” Al-Shaair told KPRC 2. “I didn’t feel bad until Friday night and I couldn’t get to sleep. I kept waking up every other hour and feeling chills and stuff. I tried to go through my morning routine and eat breakfast and see if I’m doing alright. Anybody who saw me, I told them, ‘My whole body is aching right now.’”
The situation worsened for the Texans’ veteran linebacker and team captain as the clock ticked down toward a key Sunday game against the Buffalo Bills.
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Around noon Saturday, Al-Shaair felt so bad he called the Texans’ medical staff. He went to the hospital to be checked for food poisoning, which he tested negative for, along with Covd.
Al-Shaair couldn’t hold food down. He was vomiting so much the Texans added him to the official injury report as questionable. Backup middle linebacker Neville Hewitt was preparing to start in place of Al-Shaair, who signed a three-year, $34 million free agent deal this offseason to reunite with coach DeMeco Ryans, his defensive coordinator with the San Francisco 49ers where he began his NFL career as an undrafted free agent from Florida Atlantic.
“I got really, really bad, really, really fast,” Al-Shaair said. “I got tests and stuff and we need to get back to business. It just continued to get worse. I didn’t come into the stadium on Saturday. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. If I’m going to play, if I’m not going to play.
“I woke up at like 2 o’clock Saturday morning and I was up to 2 a.m. Sunday until after the game ended. I didn’t get back to sleep. It was rough. I was all over the place. I kept weighing myself. I wanted to know where I was at.”
#Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair on his rough medical ordeal and managing to gut it out and excel in win over #Bills @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/m5f0veLLDp
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 9, 2024
What happened next for Al-Shaair is he answered the bell despite vomiting before and during the game as a severe bout of nausea overtook the Florida native.
Al-Shaair was nearly taken out of the game in the first quarter by Ryans who was concerned about his health and whether he was healthy enough to play up to his usual aggressive, hard-hitting standard.
Al-Shaair picked things up, though, going from the hospital Saturday to the football field Sunday and piling up tackles and defending Josh Allen passes in a clutch victory over the Buffalo Bills.
Al-Shaair led the Texans with eight tackles and nearly intercepted two passes during a 23-20 win over the Bills as Allen completed just 9 of 30 passes for 131 yards.
It was a gritty and remarkable performance by Al-Shaair.
“It was a valiant effort by Azeez to deal with what he was dealing with,” Ryans said. “I can’t imagine how he was feeling, what he was going through the night before the game. Know it was a tough spot for him. So, couldn’t be more proud of him for stepping up and going out, gutting it out for the team. It’s a team-first mentality. It wasn’t about him. He didn’t want to make it a big deal about him. He just wanted to go out and help the team and he had some nice plays there for us. Wish he would’ve came down with one of those interceptions, but he had a really nice game for us.”
Al-Shaair didn’t get over being sick until Tuesday morning. He still doesn’t know what kind of illness he was dealing with. He’s just glad it’s behind him and his team got the victory.
“At the end of the day, there’s a lot of things people do in general and it was tough for sure, but I’ve been through a lot worse things than that,,” said Al-Shaair, who grew up in Tampa, Fla., with his family going from hotel to hotel as they dealt with homelessness. “I was always grateful I was able to go out there and play the game I did. I’m happy we won.”
It was that kind of leadership that prompted teammates to elect him as a team captain.
“Azeez is a dawg,” fellow linebacker Henry To’oTo’o said. “He’s a true leader. He’s an inspiration not only in the community he comes from, but to a lot of people like myself. It’s a tribute to him. He’s been like a big brother to me. He’s helped me out so much.”
A year after the Texans explored signing Al-Shaair, he joined the AFC South champions during the first day of the free agent legal tampering period.
Al-Shaair has 37 tackles through five games for the 4-1 Texans. He finished fifth in the NFL last season with 163 tackles for the Tennessee Titans.
The Texans immediately targeted Al-Shaair as a key addition for their revamped front seven.
“Azeez meant everything to what we did today,” Ryans said Sunday. “People don’t know he was sick last night. Didn’t know if he was even going to play. For him, to be as tired as he was, for him to gut it out and play every snap, it was an outstanding performance by him. I know what he was battling. I know how hard it was for him to push through and play through that game. I’ve got so much respect for Azeez and what he accomplished today.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.
