Clay Matthews calls out the NFL

We often hear the NFL preach about protecting quarterbacks and defenseless receivers, but what about defenseless defenders?

Case in point: The Houston Texans lost All-Pro linebacker Brian Cushing on Monday night when he suffered a left knee injury in the second quarter against the New York Jets.

The extent of Cushing's injury? We don't know for sure, but our Mike Garafolo says it doesn't look good.

How it happened? We know exactly how it happened: a blatant chop block from Jets guard Matt Slauson. See for yourself:

This didn't at all sit well with Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Clay Matthews, who took to Twitter during the game to vent his frustration.

"If the NFL really wants to increase player safety, start protecting players on BOTH sides of the ball," tweeted Matthews, who was teammates with Cushing at USC.

Matthews continued: "Where is the NFL's protection on blocks below the waist like that on Cushing. Double standard!"

Can't argue with Matthews on this one.

(Thanks to NFL.com for alerting us to Clay Matthews' tweets)