By the end of the second quarter, Steelers’ linebacker Ryan Shazier was dancing between plays. He was in the zone all afternoon, and he knew that the 49ers could do nothing to bring him back down to earth.
With the Steelers’ defense looking to make a statement following its Week 1 loss to New England, no one made a bigger one than Shazier. After a strong training camp and preseason, the team’s No.1 draft pick in 2014 had his coming out party at just the right time.
On Sunday, Shazier filled the stat sheet, tallying 15 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, and a recovered fumble.