INDIANAPOLIS -- The Steelers expect to have Ryan Shazier on their roster again in 2019. But he won't be doing so as a player.
Much like they did last season, the Steelers expect to carry the injured linebacker on their roster on the Physically Unable to Perform List. They just have to find out from the league how that will work.
“It’s a unique situation,” general manager Kevin Colbert said Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. “Ryan will be part of the football roster in some form or fashion in 2019. We have to figure out what is legal by NFL means. We are in the process of doing that.”
The Steelers expect Shazier's 2018 contract to toll since he didn't play in 2018. But what that might mean remains to be seen.
Shazier made more than $8 million last season in the final season of his rookie deal, but the Steelers paid most of that in bonus money in the spring, lowering his salary to $458,000. Because his contract tolls, Shazier won't be a free agent and will remain with the Steelers.
Shazier was injured Dec. 4, 2017 while making a tackle in Cincinnati. He suffered a spinal column injury that required surgery to repair but has continued to make progress and wants to someday return to play in the NFL.
In the meantime, the Steelers have allowed him to continue to work with their coaching and scouting staffs, something they want to continue as he makes his recovery.
“I can’t really speak for him, but I know he still wants to try to play football. We’ll support him," Colbert said. "There’s no ceiling on what we would ever say to him as far as him wanting to do that. That’s up to him. He’ll be part of the football roster.
“He continues to rehab. He continues to improve.”