Former Steeler Ryan Shazier reunites with medical team that treated him in Cincinnati

Eight years to the day after Ryan Shazier suffered a spinal cord injury, he returned to UC Medial Center to reunite with the care team that treated him and started him on a path to recovery.

The former Steelers linebacker also met with patients to talk about his recovery process and discussed an expansion of services through his foundation Thursday in Cincinnati.

The Ryan Shazier Fund for Spinal Rehabilitation announced an expansion that extends support services to every county in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, helping close coverage gaps and ensuring that patients and caregivers are never turned away based on their location.

“This change is born out of demand,” Shazier said in a statement. “We’ve heard from so many families in places like eastern Pennsylvania and parts of Ohio who need the same support, resources, and sense of community that we’ve been able to provide in western Pa. Expanding across all counties allows us to deliver on our mission to help every person who wants to keep pushing forward after a spinal cord injury.”

The Ryan Shazier Fund has provided more than $1 million in stipends and related support services to assist individuals with spinal cord injuries and their caregivers.

On Dec. 4, 2017, Shazier was injured during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals. After making a tackle, he was temporarily paralyzed and motionless on the turf at Paul Brown Stadium. He was transported to UC Medical Center, where he received critical care and began the earliest stages of his recovery.

He spent the next two seasons on the reserve/physically unable to perform list while going through rehabilitation before officially retiring in 2020.