Count Mike Tomlin among those amazed by Ryan Shazier's recovery.
Shazier suffered a spinal injury in December of 2017 against the Bengals, and in the immediate aftermath, many wondered if he would ever walk again. Since then, however, Shazier has remained steadfast in his goals. He's walked. He's jogged. He's performed box jumps and various workouts. While it remains in the distance for now, Shazier wants to return to the field, and he wants to make the Hall of Fame.
In a sit-down interview with Jeremy Fowler for ESPN's SportsCenter, Tomlin offered the following on Shazier.
"Ryan's doing great, man," Tomlin said. "We've enjoyed his wedding and that's a surreal moment to be quite honest with you. To be in Cincinnati, Ohio, in that December a couple of years ago and to watch him walk down that aisle at his wedding, it's just an awesome thing to witness and be a part of. He gets a lot of credit for his will and his fight and his talents — and rightfully so."
Ryan Shazier danced at his wedding tonight. Danced. Guy is remarkable. #dkps #steelers pic.twitter.com/lftTPOBt0G
— DK Pittsburgh Sports (@DKPghSports) May 4, 2019
Currently, Shazier remains involved with the Steelers and is on the team's physically-unable-to-perform (PUP) list for 2019. Most notably, he's been seen working with Steelers rookie linebacker Devin Bush throughout the team's offseason training programs.
This, the team hopes, will get Bush acclimated to the NFL more quickly and will allow Bush to take over the middle of the field as Shazier once did. They'll need those contributions to avoid another disappointing finish like 2018's 9-6-1 run that failed to make the playoffs.
"I'd be kidding you if I told you I had a certain edge because of what happened in 2018," Tomlin said. "I just have a certain edge because I better have a certain edge. You know how it is: Ready for battle."
