Steelers fans should get excited about new assistant general manager

The Pittsburgh Steelers are giving their front office a makeover. Here’s why new assistant GM Andy Weidl should have fans excited. 

After a long interview process that seemed to include six finalists, the Pittsburgh Steelers finally made a decision with their new general manager. In-house Vice President of Player Personnel, Omar Khan, will now officially become Kevin Colbert’s replacement.

I have to admit that I had some mixed feelings about this, but the move the Steelers made immediately following this news put my mind at ease.

Khan is excellent when it comes to salary cap matters and handling the personnel side of things, but I was really longing for a quality talent evaluator who could help take Colbert’s place during the all-important NFL Draft process. Fortunately, I think the Steelers may have just found that guy.

Initially, I thought the GM job was going to go to Pittsburgh’s Pro Scouting Coordinator, Brandon Hunt, as he had been on the road with Colbert and Mike Tomlin for much of the pre-draft process. However, I’m excited about the hire they made immediately following the Omar Khan move.

Aditi Kinkhabwala recently reported that the Steelers are expected to hire Andy Weidl as the assistant general manager. This is a position that didn’t currently exist in Pittsburgh, but I’m glad they made an exception.

Weidl has been with the Philadelphia Eagles since 2017 and played an integral role in helping construct a roster that would prove to be good enough to take down the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.

In 2018, Weidl was hired as the Vice President of Player Personnel with the Eagles. Over the past four years, he was largely responsible for comprising Philadelphia’s draft board. He was largely responsible for drafting the likes of Jordan Mailata, Jalen Hurts, Dallas Goedert, DeVonte Smith, and Landon Dickerson.

Just this past April, the Eagles pulled in some excellent talent on paper with Jordan Davis, Cam Jurgens, and Nakobe Dean. They also traded one of their first-round picks for additional draft capital in 2023. Weidl seemed to work well with GM Howie Roseman.

What are Steelers getting in Andy Weidl?

With Andy Weidl hired, I would have to assume that Brandon Hunt — the Steelers Pro Scouting Coordinator — will probably take a job elsewhere. While Khan handles things on the financial side of the business, Weidl will be the lead man in charge of scouting and talent evaluation.

This means that during the pre-draft process, Weidl is the guy who will likely take on Kevin Colbert’s old role, and I would expect him to make the annual road trip with head coach Mike Tomlin.

That being said, this is clearly going to be a give-and-take relationship. As the assistant general manager and the new guy in the building, Tomlin is going to have quite a bit of say in what goes on — not only in the locker room but also in the front office.

While we may never find out exactly, this could even mean that during the NFL Draft process, Weidl is the person responsible for constructing the final big board, but decisions will have to be approved by coach Tomlin.

Collectively, I’m excited about the idea of Mike Tomlin, Omar Khan, and Andy Weidl working together in some of the most important leadership roles in the organization. They each bring something different to the table, and like Tomlin and Colbert, I hope this is a group that produces results and sticks together for a long time.