Each Saturday during the ongoing apocalypse, I’ll revisit an older column that ran on this site, accompanied by a handful of current observations about it at the bottom.
This one ran July 28, 2014, the sixth column I wrote for this venture:
LATROBE, Pa. — “I wasn’t surprised at all,” Ryan Shazier insisted to reporters Monday when asked about the almost barbaric punishment being doled out in the Steelers’ annual backs-on-backers drill. “We’re a hard-nosed team. We’re in Pittsburgh, Ohio.”
He caught himself immediately and laughed a bit.
“Pittsburgh, P-A. I’m sorry about that. Went to Ohio State. We’re from Pittsburgh, P-A. We play dirty.”
Caught himself again.
“Not dirty, but hard-nosed.”
Nah, that last one was fine, actually. And the other one wasn’t all bad, either. The way Shazier competed Monday — in backs-and-backers and all that followed on the first day in full pads — I’m guessing no one would care which Pittsburgh he’s from, so long as it’s the only one in the world ending with an H.
I’ll say it yet again, Nation: You will love this kid.
There was skepticism, sure, when Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert drafted him 15th overall in June. Not so much because of Shazier’s pedigree — as Tomlin deftly put it that same night, a linebacker with a stature of 6-feet-1, 237 pounds who can run the 40 in 4.42 seconds is “rare air” — but because of positioning. Everyone wanted a wide receiver. I’m no different. I heard the names, saw the highlights and pictured a bookend for Antonio Brown that would have launched the Steelers’ offense to some other stratosphere.
Well, let’s all get over it collectively. Because, as it turns out, Ryan Dean Shazier, son of a Fort Lauderdale ordained minister, might just be the right blessing at the right time.
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How respectful.
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Thank You Helpers! Download your window poster here and show your support of the Helpers. https://t.co/cIaSsesfYL … #HelpTheHelpers pic.twitter.com/tZiTNrmXtn
— Ryan Shazier (@RyanShazier) April 28, 2020
Ann Marie's strength and faith inspired me in the season finale of #50Phenoms. Thank you for sharing this journey with me and I look forward to sharing more stories of perseverance and hope with you in the future. https://t.co/WIAFCDk1jU pic.twitter.com/XVwjER9Z8a
— Ryan Shazier (@RyanShazier) April 22, 2020
In this episode of #50Phenoms, I met Justin, an emergency responder who lost both of his legs in a car crash. We talked about what motivated him to get his life back after this tragic event. Watch the full episode here: https://t.co/WIAFCDk1jU pic.twitter.com/MGDeRSpJPT
— Ryan Shazier (@RyanShazier) March 5, 2020
