A Closer Look at Ryan Shazier (Xtreme Commentary)

A Closer Look at Ryan Shazier



By John Race
SteelersXtreme.com

Ryan Shazier should produce a lot more than just the sound of crickets. But that seems to be the sound coming from a majority of Steeler Nation after the 2014 first-round pick. Once again, the Steelers did not pick one of the flashy players the draftniks slated for them. Cornerback is the greatest need facing this team, and Darqueze Dennard was sitting there, ripe for the plucking. So was Bradley Roby. Wide receiver is another position of need, and Brandin Cooks was resting on his laurels. So was Kelvin Benjamin. And if you wanted to go with a linebacker, CJ Mosely was there. How about Louis Nix as a nose tackle? He was there. What about Johnny Manziel? OK, that joke may have gone too far, but we’ll end up laughing at our Cleveland friends for that one.

But the point is, Ryan Shazier? I bet most people have never heard that name prior to Thursday night. He mentioned that the Cowboys were on the line with his agent letting them know he would be picked at 16. That’s when he got the call from Pittsburgh informing him they were drafting him at 15. OK, so the Cowboys are not that great, and maybe they were going to make the same mistake Pittsburgh made, right?

Perhaps the best thing is to help you get a better idea of Ryan Shazier’s capabilities. First, let’s take a look at his measurables and what he did at the combine and his Pro Day. But to put this in perspective, I’m going to use Sean Spence as a comparison because Shazier has a similar playing style to Spence. Plus, Spence seems to have caught the hearts of Steeler Nation, and many believe he will somehow turn this defense around upon his “miraculous” comeback from that horrific knee injury. The tale of the tape looks like this:

                    Shazier                  Spence
Height:              6’ 1”                     5’ 11”
Weight:            237 lbs                  231 lbs
40 Speed:       4.36 (Pro Day)      4.71 (Combine)
Vertical Leap:      42”                      33.5”
Broad Jump:       130”                      119”
Bench Press:    25 reps                  12 reps


Now, is there anything that just reaches out and smacks you when looking at those measurables? How about a 4.36 time in the 40? Most wide receivers in this year’s draft will never run that fast, nor the guys who will line up opposite them in the cornerback position. It was the fastest time among this year’s linebackers. Oh, and does a 42” vertical sound good? It better, because it was the best vertical jump at the combine among all positions. His 25 repetitions on the bench press of 225 pounds wasn’t the top performance, but it wasn’t too shabby for linebackers.

Now, Sean Spence was a third-round draft choice two years ago, and Ryan Shazier was selected in the first round this year. The measurables help support the difference in where they were drafted. However, there’s more to the game of football than what these guys do in a pair of shorts. What happens on the field with full pads certainly should back up where they are selected, and the Steelers are a team that selects players who have great film.

Watch any game tape of the Ohio State Buckeyes and you will quickly see how effective Shazier was on defense. He did a great job of changing jersey numbers (in memory or recognition of special people), but you’ll know it’s him because he’s the guy making the tackle. His stats will prove that out. He is third in Ohio State history in total tackles and is leaving college as a junior. Thankfully for Steele rNation he decided to go pro and not try to break that college record.

His style of play is best described as “Ramming Speed.” He plays like someone who can run 4.36 and attacks the ball carrier and quarterback using that speed. Shazier is one of the fastest defenders I’ve seen to close a 10-yard gap, meaning he will either be running in another direction or near a standstill and suddenly cover 10 yards to the ball carrier in very little time. Quarterbacks and running backs appear stunned when he’s suddenly in their face. And he’s a sure tackler, rarely allowing his opponent the opportunity to keep a play alive. Oh yeah, he is third in Ohio State Buckeye history at putting offensive players on the ground for good reason. Let’s see Johnny Manziel try to outrun this guy!

Now, anyone can Google a scouting report on Ryan Shazier and read some things he does poorly. You can also read the Sunday comics to get a similar laugh. The little terms those guys use to describe what they think they are seeing are humorous at best. So I’ll just try to put it in real-plain terms.

He needs to get his shoulders lower when he hits a ball carrier. To do that without just hunching over, he has to bend at the knees, sink the hips (lower the butt) and keep the back straight just prior to contact. “Lowering the pad level” is a term NFL defenders will site as one of the top things they had to work on when transitioning from college to the pros.

Another thing Shazier needs to work on is his block-shedding technique. I heard one of the draft commentators mention a lack of upper-body strength in contributing to this issue. Do you think Jack Lambert had great upper-body strength? His teammates from the ‘70s like to point out that Lambert rarely set foot in the weight room. So how did he shed blockers? Technique. He read the play, "felt" or saw a lineman lining up to block him, and he’d position himself to best shed the block, using his hands to prevent the lineman from getting into his body. Did I mention Shazier benches 225 pounds for 25 reps? He’s strong enough but will need to work on his technique to shed the blockers. Also, it’s been said he needs to gain more weight. You’ll note he’s approximately 237 pounds. James Farrior claimed he often weighed 218 pounds during the playoffs. Lawrence Timmons is listed at 6 feet 1 inch and weighing 234 pounds. He’s probably a little heavier now, but he’s not that far off the weight Shazier brings as a rookie. And at 21 years of age, Shazier will probably add bulk over the next few seasons.

Two years ago, the Steelers drafted Sean Spence in the third round. At that time, I likened him to a linebacker version of Troy Polamalu. He played very fast and was explosive at the point of attack. Spence played a different style than the Steelers generally had for their inside linebackers. He was not a huge, lumbering run stopper. Spence was very quick and could stop a runner behind the line or knock down a pass in coverage while leveraging his speed. Ryan Shazier is a bigger, stronger and much fast version of that player. The Steelers are trying to change how they play defense in this pass-happy era. They want someone who can cover a lot of ground very quickly and bring the ball carrier to the ground.

I don’t want to over-hype Ryan Shazier and leave the expectation he will be a Pro Bowl linebacker his rookie season. But as he learns this defense and is partnered with a very fast, athletic Lawrence Timmons, the Steelers are giving Dick Lebeau another weapon to slow the modern day offenses in the NFL. Then the sound of crickets will be heard as opposing fans leave the stadium.

  Awesome read as always, Captain.

I want to comment on two things you said:

kirklandrules wrote:

Two years ago, the Steelers drafted Sean Spence in the third round. At that time, I likened him to a linebacker version of Troy Polamalu.

"A linebacker version of Troy Polamalu" is a great way to describe Shazier. Essentially, he's going to be playing the disruptive role at the line that Troy has played over the years. With Troy being older, Shazier can do it more effectively. Also, it frees Troy up to play more of a traditional safety role, which will help our secondary by giving more help to Ike. So although we didn't draft a CB in the first round, our secondary actually got better with the selection of Shazier. Also, just like Troy, Shazier is a playmaker. I've seen him play a handful of games. Based on what I saw and what I've read and heard in the past 24 hours, if I had to describe Shazier in one word, it would be "disruptive." He's a playmaker who will disrupt offenses in much the same way Troy has over the years.

kirklandrules wrote:

The Steelers are trying to change how they play defense in this pass-happy era. They want someone who can cover a lot of ground very quickly and bring the ball carrier to the ground.

I addressed this in another thread, so I'll keep this short. Offenses have changed, and that means that defenses have to change. It was far past time for the Steelers defense to adapt. Shazier is an important step in that direction.

Love the article.

I've been reading about this guy all day (btw, ya'll should watch his press conference on Steelers.com if you haven't already.  He is a really cool guy).

An NFL analyst said he was the fastest linebacker he had ever seen coming out of college.  Anyone hear of Jack Ham or Jack Lambert?  Neither was huge, as a matter of fact Jack was "small" for the NFL and quite skinny, but they had SPEED.

I think the fans should trust the FO a little bit when it comes to selecting guys for our D.  Yes, they are going to have misses, but the history of our D speaks for itself.

I'm excited about this young man.  He is already winning me over.

Great article. what's not to like about this pick. Solid "disruptive' player who just may be a day one starter for us.

Yeah buddy! He sure was good for OSU and I am NOT an OSU fan. I became a fan of his because of his last name. I LOVE the sound of it. I would love to see him kick ass all over the NFL just like he did for OSU.

I'm baaaaaaaaaack!!! Hi everyone!!!! It's been a long time.

I can't wait to see him play his first nfl game!

This article got me pumped up for this guy. I really really hate OSU but once they put on the Steeler jersey, the past doesn't matter (look what Holmes did for us). My buddy was hoping we would draft him from the jump just based on his speed. He may not be the big bruiser of the league, but the league is getting faster. I hope that this guy pans out and has a great rookie year.

AWESOME article!