Steelers, JuJu Smith-Schuster Make Donations to Ryan Shazier's Fund

The Pittsburgh Steelers joined wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster in donating to Ryan Shazier's Fund for Spinal Rehabilitation.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers joined wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster in making a donation to former linebacker Ryan Shazier's Fund for Spinal Rehabilitation.

Shazier, who retired in 2020, played his final game on Dec. 4, 2017, when he suffered a spinal injury against the Cincinnati Bengals. In November of 2020, Shazier decided to use his experience to help others in similar situations, launching his fund.

"For spinal cord, usually you only get 30 sessions of rehab. That's like trying to teach your kid to walk again in 30 sessions. That is almost impossible," Shazier said. "We are just trying to give people more rehab, opportunities, give people back a meaningful lifestyle. Everyone is not going to walk again but give them the opportunity to get back to some type of independence. That is what my foundation is about, giving people back independence, letting them do things on their own and just give them the opportunity to have support."

Smith-Schuster donated $5,000 to Shazier's Fund. The Steelers then matched the donation, contributing $10,000 in total.

"I am truly thankful for this," Shazier told Steelers.com's, Teresa Varley. "It means a lot. It lets you know the relationships you built while playing with guys, guys who are from different backgrounds and different parts of the world, really mean something. You have relationships that go beyond football.

"This doesn't just mean a lot to mean personally, though. It means a lot because it's going to help so many people who are going through the same thing I have gone through. JuJu has firsthand experience seeing what I have gone through when we played together. It's amazing to have someone like that, someone who was a teammate not just support me, but support others."

Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.