PITTSBURGH — Officially, by order of the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, there is no hitting or tackling involved during the organized team activity period of the off-season.
Even if it’s just in shorts and helmets, some limited contact is allowed, however, if not inevitable.
When Ryan Shazier is involved there just tends to be a little more contact than usual.
Maybe it’s because Shazier was the 15th pick in the recent draft, or maybe it’s because he’s been basically anointed a starter without playing a snap. Whatever it is, rookie hazing or a rite of passage, the Steelers’ first-rounder just can’t seem to avoid the rough stuff that some of his veteran teammates have been doling out.
Not that the former Ohio State star minds the extra attention.
“Offensive linemen try and be big and bad and everything, so I go out there and rough it up with them sometimes,” Shazier said Wednesday after the second day of OTAs on the South Side. “I’m just learning what I have to do, learning the type of game that they play so I can play with them.”
Shazier started a minor commotion Tuesday when he threw Maurkice Pouncey hard to the ground. Generally speaking, that’s not a good way to impress new teammates, particularly one who’s a three-time Pro Bowl center or one who’s coming off a serious knee injury.
“He’s going to what he’s got to do, and I have to do what I have to do,” Shazier said of Pouncey. “I respect him a lot and hope he can continue what he does.”
What 6-foot-1, 237-pound Shazier hopes to do is to provide some speed and toughness at inside linebacker as a perceived upgrade over Vince Williams. At Ohio State, Shazier recorded 315 tackles in 39 games to earn his lofty draft status. But Shazier is still learning the pro game and earning the trust of his new coaches and teammates.
“Everybody’s fast at this level,” Shazier said. “One little mistake can make a big difference.”
Rarely do rookies start in coordinator Dick LeBeau’s complicated defensive schemes, but Shazier seemingly has been charged with that task. Shazier says he’s up for the challenge, reading the playbook religiously and seeking any advantage he can get.
“I understand it doesn’t happen too often, but I feel like the coaches have kind of put trust in me,” Shazier said.
While it might seemed preordained that Shazier will start this season, he says that’s not the case.
“I don’t feel like nothing’s guaranteed,” said Shazier, who’s been working closely with Lawrence Timmons. “I’m just trying to do what I can do, learning the defense and do what I can to help this team develop and be the best we can be and trying to get another Super Bowl.”
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