Tom Brady surprisingly comes to defense of Steelers safety after dirty hit and suspension

In a surprising turn of events, Tom Brady has become the NFL's biggest advocate for defenders.

The former Patriots and Buccaneers legend has called out the league for scapegoating defensive players with fines and suspensions over hits that were often the result of poor quarterback play.

On Monday, after the NFL suspended Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Damontae Kazee for the remainder of the season, Brady hit back with a comment on a SportsCenter Instagram post.

"Nobody likes seeing players get hurt. But hard hits happen," Brady wrote. QBs should not be throwing the ball in areas where they are exposing their own teammates to these types of hits. Coaches need to coach better, QBs needs to read coverages and throw the ball to the right places and defenders should aim for the right hitting areas. To put the blame on the defense player all the time is just flat out wrong. Need better QB play!! It's not OK QBs to get your WRs hit because of your bad decisions!"

Is the NFL's suspension of Damontae Kazee an overreaction?

Kazee was suspended for repeated violations, including his controversial hit on Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman as he laid out in an attempt to catch the ball. Kazee hit the receiver in the helmet with his shoulder, resulting in a concussion. The referees ejected the Steelers defender on the spot.

However, debate has raged since that moment with some asking what the league expects a defender like Kazee to do in that situation while others, like Brady, put the blame on Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew for putting the ball in a dangerous spot for his receiver.

There's got to be a middle ground here. Brady is right that quarterbacks need to do more to protect their receivers by not throwing into those kinds of windows. But the fact that the quarterback hung his receiver out to dry doesn't give the defender leeway to lay a dangerous hit. Kazee's hit on an entirely defenseless receiver definitely warranted punishment, from the unnecessary roughness penalty to an ejection.

The better question is whether Kazee deserved to get suspended for the remainder of the season, including the playoffs? The NFL ought to ramp up to such severe punishment instead of going there straight away. A single-game suspension would have sent a message as well.

Broncos safety Kareem Jackson successfully reduced his four-game suspension for similar violations down to two games. So Kazee does have a chance to take the field again if his appeal is handled in a similar fashion.

The Steelers have three games left on the schedule and they're hoping to grab a Wild Card spot along the way.