Steeler LB Ryan Shazier has spinal surgery

[RobertWeathers]

Agreed -- Shazier was a 1st-round pick, so fortunately his guaranteed money should be enough to take care of him. BUT...a player that talented, on his rookie contract, surely expected to see a huge FA deal in his near future. It would be all too easy for a young guy to think "that'll be the money I'll be careful with."

Best wishes to him for a full recovery.

Yea aside from just living a full life his earnings potential was massive

 

[cupofjoe1962]

His playing days are probably over, but I sure hope he is able to walk & live a normal life.

 

[Ring 6]

Agreed -- Shazier was a 1st-round pick, so fortunately his guaranteed money should be enough to take care of him. BUT...a player that talented, on his rookie contract, surely expected to see a huge FA deal in his near future. It would be all too easy for a young guy to think "that'll be the money I'll be careful with."

Best wishes to him for a full recovery.

Someone said they picked up his 5th year option for 8.7 million and it’s guaranteed for injury.
So if his career is over, essentially his retirement starts with winning lotto.

 

[drewskie]

Tomlin seems like a dirty coach

Its funny that we get accused of 'cheating' when you look at the Steelers' history of cheap shots from many of their players (William Gay, Ryan Shazier, James Harrison, Hines Ward, Troy Polamalu), Tomlin 'accidentally' coming onto the field conveniently, etc.

I just want to say that from my quick recollection that outside of Bernard Pollard, their defensive players never struck me as dirty unlike Pittsburgh which is understated in many football circles unless you're a Bengals fan.

Antonio Brown claiming 'karma'? Look at Shazier's hits to Kizer and Giovani Bernard in the past and while you never root for an injury I can't say I'm surprised given the way Shazier consistently spears people yet isn't called for it. And if you go back to tape of him at OSU his technique certainly wasn't like it was now.

 

[Not Over 07]

He’s young and strong and hopefully that will help him to fully recover. He’s got a healthy bank account and his whole life in front of him. He can start a business, become wildly successful and make more money than he ever would’ve made playing football. Here’s hoping the best for him and his family.

 

[Pats1989]

He will be able to play football again I assume? Rappaports tweet said it'll take months of recovery.

 

[rochrist]

Tomlin seems like a dirty coach

What gave it away? Was it Tomlin tripping the kick turner?

 

[everlong]

I wonder if Don Blackmon and Michael Irvin retired because they had experienced spinal contusions?

Ivin was spinal cord compression due to to compression from the vertebrae. I'm not sure if that's a type of contusion or not. Blackmon's was also vertebrae but in the neck. If I remember correctly he had a vertebrae removed and when he left the field had no motion to his lower body. They were both smart and got out.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Ivin was spinal cord compression due to to compression from the vertebrae. I'm not sure if that's a type of contusion or not. Blackmon's was also vertebrae but in the neck. If I remember correctly he had a vertebrae removed and when he left the field had no motion to his lower body. They were both smart and got out.

Yep. No need to keep playing.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Spinal surgery reality, very best case scenario:

-a month or more to regain full "normal" movement (this assumes no nerve damage, at all)
-another two months before you can do very small things like bending to pick anything up or lifting anything heavier than a gallon of milk
-another three months before you can do light physical activity like swimming, walking more than 15 minutes, or just carrying two bags of groceries

so that's 6 months, for a best-case scenario, to become kind of functional (which I've personally experienced)

Doing something as crazy as playing football would not be something one would normally even try to fit on any spinal surgery recovery timetable.

I'm pulling for the guy to live a semi-normal life.
-

 

[TommyD4207]

If he tackles with his head up, as opposed to trying to use his helmet as a weapon, he's at practice today.

 

[lillloyd]

Just saw a clip of the tackle that injured Shazier, and I can't help but notice that it looks like he makes contact with the bengal player with the TOP of his head. It makes me cringe because you would think that on the professional level players would have been coached for many years NEVER to hit with the top of your head.

Since Shazier came into the league I've told friends that if he doesn't fix his tackling technique he's going to kill himself on the field one day. I'm not the only one who's had this opinion to be sure.

He is so fast, and he never brings his feet. He is always lunging at speed to make a big play, so he's always perpendicular to the ground. And he doesn't keep his head up.

For people who think he's dirty, I'll disagree. I think he has poor tackling technique and has never made an adjustment that's held up over time. Certainly, I do not think he was attempting to injure the ball carrier Monday night.

It pains me to say it, but the best possible scenario for Shazier would be for him to make a full recovery (walking and everything else), but be denied the ability to play football again. It would just be a matter of time until something else happened

 

[lillloyd]

Really dude? Let's not go that low like other fan bases

Every fan base has a few.

Maybe he's young. The ability to show empathy doesn't always happen early on

 

[Oswlek]

Since Shazier came into the league I've told friends that if he doesn't fix his tackling technique he's going to kill himself on the field one day. I'm not the only one who's had this opinion to be sure.

He is so fast, and he never brings his feet. He is always lunging at speed to make a big play, so he's always perpendicular to the ground. And he doesn't keep his head up.

For people who think he's dirty, I'll disagree. I think he has poor tackling technique and has never made an adjustment that's held up over time. Certainly, I do not think he was attempting to injure the ball carrier Monday night.

It pains me to say it, but the best possible scenario for Shazier would be for him to make a full recovery (walking and everything else), but be denied the ability to play football again. It would just be a matter of time until something else happened

Have you ever taken a blood test to see if you have a reasonableness gene missing from most people in Western PA? You make it so hard to dislike you that I don't even try anymore.

 

[lillloyd]

Have you ever taken a blood test to see if you have a reasonableness gene missing from most people in Western PA? You make it so hard to dislike you that I don't even try anymore.

Maybe I'm naive but I really believe that most fans of the Steelers and Pats (and any others for that matter) would get along just fine if they could just talk over a beer, rather than shout at each other across the Internet.

We're so tribal these days in everything. Sports is no different I guess

 

[luuked]

Agreed -- Shazier was a 1st-round pick, so fortunately his guaranteed money should be enough to take care of him. BUT...a player that talented, on his rookie contract, surely expected to see a huge FA deal in his near future. It would be all too easy for a young guy to think "that'll be the money I'll be careful with."

Best wishes to him for a full recovery.

Which is where he should have listened to many vet players and taken out an insurance.

I get when player that receive around the minimum dont do it because paying a couple 100K a year to be insured for 20-30m is a difficult proposition but pro-bowl level players that know that their next contract will be big can afford that.

It might seem like a hindsight discussion because something happened to Shazier but we had that exact discussion in the offseason in the context of Butler playing out his final ERFA year. Mayo said that for a couple 100k Malcom could have tax-free insurance that would be pretty much at the same magnitude as his next contract.

 

[1960Pats]

Awful news. The dark side of the NFL. I hope that he makes a full recovery, for life purposes if not for football purposes. The funny (ironic) thing is, with all the Gronk and JuJu stuff going on this week, the play where he was hurt didn't look like anything bad. Just a move the wrong way...

I'm surprised that injury doesn't occur more often considering how often I see players leading with the crown of their helmet.

 

[1960Pats]

This is why I hate players lining up to hit others by leading with the crown of their helmet acting as a spear. It is dangerous to everyone involved, from who is doing the hitting to who is on the receiving end. Belichick certainly coaches up our guys to make textbook tackles. Otherwise you get Shazier or TJ Ward situations.

I cringe whenever I see players use the crown of their helmet that way. If I remember correctly it was the Steelers who complained the most/loudest when the NYFL tried to cut back on the helmet to helmet hits a few years ago.

 

[VegasGuy]

I really hope for the sake of his health and his family that he retires.

 

[VegasGuy]

I'm surprised that injury doesn't occur more often considering how often I see players leading with the crown of their helmet.

I fully agree.