Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier suffered a scary spinal injury during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals in December 2017 and has been sidelined ever since.

However, Shazier may end up back on the field sooner rather than later.

Steelers owner Art Rooney II said that Shazier is making “amazing progress” and that he is inspiring everyone on Pittsburgh:

“Almost every week, he’s doing something he wasn’t doing the week before,” Rooney said, according to Joe Rutter of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “He’s a remarkable young man and an inspiration to everybody around here.”

In 12 games during the 2017 campaign, Shazier registered 89 tackles, three interceptions, a pair of forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and 11 passes defended en route to a Pro Bowl selection.

The 26-year-old, who played his collegiate football at Ohio State University, was originally selected by the Steelers in the first round (15th pick overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft.

He played in nine games during his rookie campaign, finishing with 40 tackles. He then followed that up with 87 tackles, 3.5 sacks, a pick, a couple of forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in 12 games during second season.

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Then, in 2016, Shazier made his first trip to Honolulu after recording 87 tackles, 3.5 sacks, three interceptions, three forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and nine passes defended.

In spite of missing the entire 2018 campaign, Shazier's salary for the season was guaranteed for injury. As a matter of fact, the Steelers restructed Shazier's contract to give him most of his money up front this past year.

While his deal expires in March, Rooney says that the Steelers plan to re-sign him.