Indianapolis wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. catches a pass before being hit by Pittsburghsafety Damontae Kazee during Saturday’s game. Pittman was injured on the play and Kazee was ejected. Michael Conroy/Associated Press

The NFL suspended Pittsburgh safety Damontae Kazee without pay for the remainder of the season for what the league described as “repeated violations” of rules designed to protect player safety.

The ruling, issued by NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan on Monday, means Kazee will miss Pittsburgh’s final three regular-season games and any potential playoff games if the Steelers (7-7) advance to the postseason.

Kazee was ejected from Pittsburgh’s 30-13 loss to Indianapolis on Saturday after hitting diving Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. in the second quarter. Pittman laid out to try and catch a pass and Kazee made contact with Pittman’s head. Pittman left the game and went into the concussion protocol.

Runyan wrote in a letter to Kazee that illegal contact with Pittman “could have been avoided.” Runyan pointed to Kazee’s repeated violations of safety rules as one of the driving forces behind the suspension.

Kazee, a seven-year veteran, has been fined nearly a half-dozen times by the league this season. He will forfeit around $208,000 in game checks by missing Pittsburgh’s final three games.

• Pittsburgh is turning to Mason Rudolph at quarterback in hopes of salvaging their season.

Coach Mike Tomlin said Monday that Rudolph, a six-year veteran who hasn’t started a meaningful game since 2021, will start on Saturday against Cincinnati if Kenny Pickett’s surgically repaired right ankle isn’t healthy in time. Rudolph replaces Mitch Trubisky, who struggled in losses to New England and Indianapolis while filling in for Pickett.

The Steelers (7-7) are 28th in scoring and haven’t scored more than 18 points in each of their past five games, a stretch in which they’ve gone just 1-4 to squander the momentum generated by a somewhat surprising 6-3 start. The only win during their current slide came at Cincinnati (8-6), when they rolled up 421 yards in the first game since firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada.

JAGUARS: Trevor Lawrence will have to wait a few days, at the very least, to address his latest debacle.

Lawrence fumbled twice in Jacksonville’s 23-7 home loss to Baltimore on Sunday night and made a head-scratching throw short of the end zone in the waning seconds of the first half. He ended the night in the NFL’s concussion protocol and was not allowed to speak to reporters afterward.

It was the Jaguars’ third consecutive loss and dropped them into a tie with Houston and Indianapolis atop the AFC South at 8-6.

TITANS: Tennessee is in wait-and-see mode about how Will Levis’ left ankle feels after being bent backward during his seventh and final sack late in overtime against Houston on Sunday.

Coach Mike Vrabel said Levis was sore Monday. The rookie quarterback has been on the injury report for the same foot or ankle since early November, and he got a ride on a cart to his car from the stadium on Sunday after talking to reporters following a 19-16 overtime loss to the Texans.