The NFL’s decision to suspend Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for his brutal hit on Juaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence ignited a debate in the NFL community. While many criticized Al-Shaair for his recklessness, the Patriots’ Jahlani Tavai questioned the NFL for over-protecting quarterbacks a few days back. Now, Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons has cited the example of Patrick Mahomes to share his thoughts on how things can be more balanced.

As per Parsons, he thinks quarterbacks are exploiting the grey area that comes with sliding whenever they want to. “I just think the NFL should do a better job clearing up the gray area. If a quarterback acts like he’s going out of bounds, he should go out of bounds. That’s where you should mark him. If he’s acting like he’s going to slide, that’s where you should mark him,” Parsons said.

There is no defending Al-Shaair’s hit, but there is an argument to be made that the slide both exposes quarterbacks to malicious hits and puts defenders in an impossible spot. Because of how fast the game moves, it is extremely difficult for defenders to process in real time if and when a QB is going to slide. Well, Parsons didn’t just suggest an idea to the NFL to change their stance on QB sliding but also pointed out how certain players take advantage of the situation, using Patrick Mahomes as an example.

The Chiefs QB has recently been called out for ‘fake sliding.’ “You see a lot of guys taking advantage and getting extra yards off that. And [Patrick] Mahomes wins games off that. We can’t act like these aren’t game-changing opportunities and plays that they’re extending drives on. So those are momentum changers. They definitely have to clear up the gray area because it’s just a tough situation,” Parsons pointed out. The thought of calling out Mahomes may have stemmed from the viral clip of the Chiefs and Lions game last year.

There was a moment in the third quarter when Mahomes was scrambling for rushing yards and sliding his way through Lions defenders. The signal-caller was bashed online for taking advantage of NFL rules which are in favor of the QBs in such situations. Mahomes is known to sprint down the sidelines, which sometimes results in drawing late hits and unnecessary roughness penalties. On occasion, Mahomes has also faked stepping out of bounds, as seen against the San Francisco 49ers this season, before ripping off more yards and staying in bounds.

It happened at the end of the third quarter, and Patrick Mahomes pulled off a 33-yard scramble! It started with a pump fake when he saw the 49ers’ Fred Warner storming his way. Avoiding the sack, Mahomes sprinted toward the sideline. As he approached the first-down marker, linebacker Dee Winters was there to stop him. But to avoid a roughness penalty, thinking that Mahomes would step out of bounds, Winters didn’t block him. But the Chiefs QB continued his run and soon followed the criticism for unsportsmanlike behavior. Mahomes’ reaction?

“I don’t believe, on that play, I was really showing like I was going out of bounds. I don’t want to ever put a defender in a bad spot. When I go out of bounds, I’m going out of bounds. I’m not trying to fake a guy by using use a loophole in the rule.” But that’s how many in the NFL community see it. The ‘fake slliding’ situation means defenders are afraid to hit quarterbacks hard if they indicate they’re ending a play on their own accord, and QBs are more than happy to take advantage of this hesitance. Even the Pats’ Jahlani Tavai expressed his frustration at this alleged bias.

Talking on the Greg Hills Show, he said, “I think its the hardest thing to do, tackling the quarterback, because you don’t know if they are gonna slide, you don’t know if they are gonna get that extra yard or go off balance. So I understand where he’s coming from, but it’s just a tough play. This also goes on probably the players, on the quarterbacks, too. You can’t slide last minute….I don’t like it they are so protected in this league. Back in the day, you could do whatever to a QB; you can dog-rag him whatever.” Interestingly, a quarterback, too, agreed with this sentiment.

Former Packers signal-caller Kurt Benkert shared a video of Patrick Mahomes’ fake slide against the Lions from 2023. Advocating for the defensive teams in the league, Benkert wrote, “Playing defense in the NFL is harder than people on Twitter think it is. Good luck predicting a slide or not.” Here’s where college football has progressed more when compared to the NFL. In the 2021 ACC Championship game against Wake Forest, then-Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett used this tactic to score a touchdown in the eventual win. But less than a week later, the NCAA banned fake slides by ball carriers.

That said, amid all the heat that the QBs, and especially Mahomes, are facing from the NFL’s defensive community, Mahomes shared his take on the ongoing debate.

Patrick Mahomes on the controversy of quarterbacks deliberately sliding

Certain sections of NFL fans are busy calling out the Chiefs QB for exploiting the rule to gain some extra yards. But, he had a simple but straightforward answer to that. “I’m just playing football at the end of the day. And I don’t feel like I’ve ever put anybody in jeopardy of not wanting to hit me.” Although he still hasn’t been on the receiving end of such a brutal hit, he did express his thoughts on what goes through his mind while sliding, “I’m big on when I do slide. Trying to get the head down because at the end of the day, man, it’s a split-second decision.”

He also talked about how the defenders aren’t trying to hurt anybody with those tackles. “I mean, for the most part, 99% of guys are not trying to hurt anybody. They’re just trying to make plays, and those guys are flying down trying to stop you from getting first down.” 

Al-Shaair was suspended by the league for three games, and perhaps rightfully so. But the broader issues raised by Parsons and others need to be looked at. Just like Parsons, many fans also feel the NFL needs to fix QBs sliding for the sake of their safety and the defenders trying to play their natural game. The league, whose rules are tilted in favor of offenses and scoring points, needs to give something to the defenders as well.