After Kansas City Chiefs safety Husain Abdullah was penalized for “going to the ground” and engaging in an Islamic prayer after returning a Tom Brady interception for a touchdown on Monday Night Football, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) pressured the NFL to “clarify its policies” on “unsportsmanlike conduct” penalties.
“To prevent the appearance of a double standard, we urge league officials to clarify the policy on prayer and recognize that the official made a mistake in this case,” CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper said in a Tuesday statement, pointing out that Tim Tebow was never penalized for praying.
After the game, Abdullah thought he may have been flagged for sliding before he prayed in the end zone. NFL players have in the past been flagged for sliding. But an NFL official said after CAIR asked for clarification that “Abdullah should not have been penalized” because “the officiating mechanic in this situation is not to flag a player who goes to the ground as part of religious expression, and as a result, there should have been no penalty on the play.”
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