Connor Shaw Takes Issue With “Cheap” Hit

The NFL preseason is always rife with injuries. Some are freakish, some are unavoidable, and some, if you believe Chicago Bears depth quarterback Connor Shaw, are unacceptable.

Shaw took to Twitter on Sunday morning to express his anger at a sack attempt by sixth-round Chiefs defensive end Rakeem Nunez-Roches. The tackle broke Shaw’s leg and will wind up costing him the entire 2016 season. Shaw claimed the hit “should’ve been avoided” and that there was “no need for that type of cheap BS” on a post that has since been deleted.

The gruesome tackle came about as Nunez-Roches began the hit around Shaw’s shoulders but then pulled his entire weight downwards, collapsing onto Shaw’s lower body and appearing to make Shaw’s leg bend the opposite way. You can check out the uncomfortable footage for yourself here: https://twitter.com/WindyCGridiron/status/769627949494439936

Watching in real time, it seems unlikely that the KC defender intended to maim his victim. Rather, he seemed to suddenly remember to bring down the quarterback with him as he went to ground so as to complete the sack – a lesson also taught on the most recent episode of Hard Knocks.

Perhaps Shaw’s removal of the complaint is proof enough that he sent the post on tilt and didn’t really mean it. At any rate, it’s a rough way to start your career in a new city.

Before 2016, Shaw spent two years buried underneath the depth chart in Cleveland. With disillusioned Browns fans clamouring to see what the unproven prospect had as his fellow quarterbacks were felled by injury, the salary cap or their own stupidity, Shaw earned his only start against the Ravens, in which he threw for 177 yards and an interception.

After being cut, a bizarre and embarrassing turn of events resulted in the Saints expressed interest in claiming Shaw off waivers. New Orleans accidentally sent the email to the other 31 franchises instead of the NFL. The Bears, holding higher priority care of a worse record, signed Shaw to a three-year, $1.5 million contract this offseason.