Watch: Steelers Star Who Suffered Scary Spinal Injury Hits Incredible Recovery Milestone
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier hit a major milestone this week in his recovery from a spinal injury in December 2017 that left him unable to walk.
Since then, Shazier has been working hard to get back on his feet and his journey has been an inspiration to teammates and millions of fans.
On Sunday, he posted a video on Instagram that showed him making his next leap forward in his recovery — literally. Shazier, with the assistance of his trainer, did a 3 foot high leap onto a box.
“Dedication = Hard Work + Patience,” he wrote on his Instagram post.
In an interview with ESPN, Shazier said this was something he had been working on for a while.
“The first boxes were a lot lower than that,” Shazier said. “It all began with just trying to jump — no box. It slowly graduated to what you see in that video.”
Shazier was injured on Dec. 1, 2017 in a Monday Night Football game against the Bengals. The two-time Pro Bowler, who was drafted out of Ohio State in 2014, suffered a spinal injury and had to be carted off the field.
A few days later he had successful spinal stabilization surgery and by January 2018 he had regained feeling in his legs. By February, he was standing and on April 26, 2018, Shazier walked out to introduce the Steelers’ first pick in the NFL Draft.
We all #SHALIEVE. pic.twitter.com/cByTumbaHa
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 27, 2018
Since then, he’s continued to make strides with the hope of playing football again.
Shazier re-signed with the Steelers for 2019 and he was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) so he can still get paid and receive medical benefits through his recovery. The deal also allows Shazier to get one year closer to an NFL pension.
“We will continue to support Ryan’s efforts to return to play,” Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert told SB Nation. “Although he won’t be able to help us on the field in 2019, his leadership, insight, and emotional support have always been very valuable to us, and we look forward to his contributions in our pursuit of a championship.”
Ryan’s father Vernon Shazier said his son works hard every day on getting better.
“He’s grinding every day. It’s been very intense,” Vernon Shazier told ESPN. “He’s come a long way but has a long ways to go. We’re grateful for the progress he’s achieved. He’s been dedicated to doing all he can to make as much progress as he can. We don’t have a ceiling, just working day to day. You know how the journey began, so to see him do that is very encouraging.”
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