Ryan Shazier is Using Steelers’ Lesson from 2017 to Help Provide Financial Freedom for Others

[Steeler Nation]

The Pittsburgh Steelers are arguably one of the best franchises in all of sports in player and organizational support, both on and off the field. Professional football players tend to summarize their lives into three aspects; life before football, during football, and life after football. Within the last decade, we’ve seen top talent voluntarily retire from the Steelers. Hines Ward retired in 2012 and has made a name for himself in the coaching world in the NFL and now XFL. Troy Polamalu hung up his cleats in 2015 and has most recently been enshrined in the NFL Hall of Fame. Heath Miller has enjoyed a modest life since he announced his retirement in 2016. Most recently, we’ve seen Ben Roethlisberger enjoy his retirement by attending different public gatherings and sporting events. But there is the Steelers’ first-round pick of 2014 who is starting his life in business ventures after he was forced to end his NFL career early.

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Steelers former QB Ben Roethlisberger Making Most of Retirement​

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Ryan Shazier is on a mission to spread his lesson he learned from the Steelers and his message about financial security and protection for families to be equipped to face unexpected events in their lives.

We all remember that dreadful Monday night in Cincinnati in December, 2017. Just minutes into the physical divisional game, Shazier suffered a severe back injury on a pass breakup against Cincinnati Bengals receiver Josh Mallone. In that instant, a career with so much potential was put on hold. After emergency spinal stabilization surgery, tedious physical therapy regimens, and even having to learn how to walk again, Shazier’s hopeful return to the NFL was ultimately deemed impossible and led to his retirement in 2020. But at just 28 years old at the time, Shazier knew he had more to give off of the field, and worked hard in different entrepreneurial endeavors in order to do so. Shazier founded a variety of charitable organizations including the Shalieve Fight Foundation and the Ryan Shazier Fund for Spinal Rehabilitation. In 2021, Shazier partnered with his father in the creation of a Pennsylvania trucking company, Shay Trucking. But amongst these ventures, Shazier remembered how the Steelers supported him and his family financially in his road to recovery.

Steelers ‘ Ryan Shazier is carted off the field in Cincinnati (Peter Diana/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

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Shazier has Made Tremendous Progress in his Recovery​

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This is what led Shazier partnering with Arias Agencies under American Income and Global Life in the creation of the Shazier Agency.

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A post shared by Ryan Shazier (@shazier)​

In an Instagram post earlier this month, Shazier explained:

“The reason I wanted to start Shazier Agency is I thought it would be important to be able to provide people support. That’s one thing that I always thought was very critical, especially since I’ve been injured. A lot of people are kind of lost when you’re in a sport and you really care about a sport, but you don’t really know what you want to do next.”

It is not unheard of in the NFL of younger players losing their career earnings due to poor financial advice given by the wrong advisors. Not to mention, in the event of career-ending injuries, some players are left alone and forced to begin their lives as ‘civilians’ with not a lot of support on which to rely. Shazier had these players in mind, in addition to countless Pennsylvania families, to help protect their life’s earnings and families’ financial freedoms. Shazier talked some about how his agency helps those individuals in the next stage of their lives:

“It [the agency] is a way you can transition into business and still have that competitive drive that you once had. I don’t want people to work for me; I want you to be able to work with me so we can help change people’s lives, help our communities, and be able to create generational wealth along the way.”

Shazier understands the importance of being prepared for the unexpected and is doing a great job spreading that message and helping others along the way. Shazier is proving an NFL career could simply be a springboard into another chapter of life and is working to pave ways for others in their professional development.



What is your favorite Shazier memory? What else do you think he has in store in retirement? Let us know in the comments below!

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[steelcan58]

Good on Shazier. This is something the NFLPA should really be pushing if they gave a rat's *** about the players. Far too many athletes, especially those that have their careers cut short just aren't prepared for the next stage of their lives. They're under the misconception that they will maintain their playing days level of pay forever. That's just not reality.