Pittsburgh Steelers star linebacker Ryan Shazier managed to dance with his bride just 18 months after suffering a spinal injury that almost left him paralyzed.
Following the horrific injury during a game against the Cincinatti Bengals, doctors warned Shazier that he had a mere 20 percent chance of ever walking again.
Incredibly, following surgery to stabilize his spinal column, Shazier has been lifting weights, jogging and yes — dancing with his new wife.
According to the New York Post, though the 26-year-old won’t be returning this coming NFL season, he has kept himself busy with team activities, including scouting college talent and working as an advisory coach for the team’s inside linebackers.
Shazier’s father, Vernon J. Shazier, is a chaplain in the NFL and has tweeted regularly about his son’s ordeal, praying that God might have His way and help him return to the field.
“God is able,” he wrote, declaring that his son will soon don his Steelers jersey once again.
Ryan himself talked openly about his faith in the wake of a such a life-changing injury.
“I want to thank the Lord for the first downs that he has been allowing me to achieve,” he wrote on Instagram about a month after suffering the spinal contusion. “The touchdown is going to come in his timing, but today was a first down. I was finally able to make it to practice with my teammates.”
“The Lord has not finished his work yet,” he added.