Shazier remains in Cincy hospital
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier will remain in a Cincinnati hospital until at least today to undergo further testing on a spinal injury suffered in the first quarter of Monday night’s win against the Bengals.
Shazier left Paul Brown Stadium on a stretcher less than four minutes into his team’s 2320 victory against Cincinnati following a tackle that left the 25-year-old writhing on the turf, his legs motionless. He underwent extensive testing overnight, with the team saying Shazier’s injury did not require surgery “at this time.”
The Steelers had hoped Shazier would be able to return to Pittsburgh yesterday. The timetable has been pushed back at least 24-48 hours. He will remain at University of Cincinnati Medical Center and is expected to be transferred to a Pittsburgh hospital later in the week.
While the severity of the injury will remain unknown until the swelling subsides, the relentlessly upbeat Shazier offered a bit of hope last night.
“Thank you for the prayers,” Shazier tweeted. “Your support is uplifting to me and my family. (hash) SHALIEVE”
Pair suspended
Steelers rookie wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and Bengals cornerback George Iloka have been suspended one game each by the NFL for violating league safety rules.
Smith-Schuster was flagged for unnecessary roughness and taunting after a blind-side hit on Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict in the fourth quarter Monday night. Iloka was penalized for unnecessary roughness for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown ....
The Buffalo Bills placed wide receiver Jordan Matthews (knee) and defensive end Shaq Lawson (ankle) on injured reserve, ending their seasons.
Levitre streak ends
Atlanta Falcons guard Andy Levitre will miss a game for the first time in his NFL career.
The nine-year veteran won’t play tomorrow night against the New Orleans Saints because of a triceps injury. Levitre had started 140 consecutive games since entering the league with Buffalo in 2009. He also spent two seasons with Tennessee before being dealt to the Falcons in 2015.
Coach Dan Quinn ruled out Levitre yesterday. It’s not known how long he will be sidelined . . . .
The Chicago Bears placed right guard Kyle Long on injured reserve for the second straight season.
The three-time Pro Bowler has been trying to play through a left shoulder injury he suffered in 2016. He aggravated it during Sunday’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers and sat out the second half.
Warner in booth
Kurt Warner will replace Cris Collinsworth for two late-season NFL game telecasts.
The Hall of Fame quarterback will be the analyst with play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico for the Dec. 16 Chicago-Detroit game on NFL Network, and for the Christmas game of Pittsburgh at Houston on NBC and NFLN. Collinsworth has scheduling conflicts on those two dates . . . .
The Denver Broncos placed defensive end Derek Wolfe on season-ending injured reserve with a neck injury.
Wolfe left the Nov. 26 game at Oakland in the first quarter due to the injury. He played in 11 games this season, with 31 tackles and two sacks.