Steelers assistant GM Andy Weidl is improving 'the standard' on the offensive line

Mike Tomlin's saying has always been 'The standard is the standard.' The problem is: what happens when the standard isn't cutting it? Over the past five years, the Pittsburgh Steelers have missed on numerous early draft picks, and their team-building philosophy has been questionable at best. That could be about to change.

At the end of last offseason, the Steelers hired former Eagles director of player personnel, Andy Weidl, to be Pittsburgh's assistant general manager. Now 'The standard' is about to take on a whole new meaning. After building an incredibly strong roster in Philadelphia that ultimately helped the Eagles to a Super Bowl appearance, Weidl has taken his talents to Pittsburgh.

There are a number of new 'standards' Weidl will bring to the Steelers, but the offensive line was his area of expertise in Philly. Over the past several years, Kevin Colbert and the Steelers have done a patchwork job on the offensive line. Instead of making lasting investments, they attempted to piece it together with underwhelming investments and misjudged talent evaluations with players like Trai Turner and Kendrick Green. Fortunately, we could see a whole new OL in 2023.

In his first offseason as the Eagles director of player personnel in 2018, Weidl struck gold on OT Jordan Mailata in the seventh round. The following year, Weidl spent his first-round pick on another offensive tackle in Andre Dillard.

Dillard ultimately proved to be a bust, but this was a learning experience for Weidl. Mailata and Dillard were very different prospects. Dillard tested as a great athlete, but had below-average size and length for the OT position, according to Mockdraftable's database. His 33 1/2'' arms measured in the 27th percentile while his 80 3/8'' wingspan put him in the 26th percentile among NFL tackles.

On the other hand, Mailata was a mammoth. He entered the draft at 6'8'' and 346 pounds with massive 35 1/2'' arms. Mailata proved to be a fantastic option to pair with right tackle Lane Johnson for the Eagles. Coincidentally, Johnson's arms measure in at 35 1/4''.

Steelers will target size and length at OT in the NFL Draft

Weidl's stint as the director of player personnel with the Eagles has made us well aware of some of the traits he values when it comes to the offensive line. While the length thresholds don't apply to interior offensive linemen, Weidl added a 335-pounder in Nate Herbig this offseason. The Steelers slo reportedly attempted to sign OT Orlando Brown Jr. -- who stands at 6'7 7/8'' and 345 pounds with 35'' arms.

In addition to this, Wiedl drafted TCU offensive lineman Matt Pryor back in 2019 (who had 35 1/2'' arms at 6'6 5/8'', 328 lbs), and later added Le'Raven Clark to the Eagles roster (who has massive 36 1/8'' arms.

After missing out on Brown in free agency, the Steelers signed Clark as a depth OT option, but now they will set their sights on beefing up the position in the 2023 NFL Draft. Because of his impressive history with big, long offensive tackles, Weidl will look to bolster Pittsburgh's OL in a similar way.

This means that a player like Northwestern OT Peter Skoronski may be out of the picture entirely. In addition to not receiving a Pro Day visit from Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan, Skoronski's 32 1/4'' arms are historically low and fall well short of the threshold that Weidl prefers. This could also mean that the Steelers may not be as high on Darnell Wright (33 3/4'' arms) as many fans assume.

However, there are a few tackles that fit Weidl's profile remarkably well. The first is Ohio State OT Dawand Jones. At 6'8' 1/4'' and 374 pounds with 36 3/8'' arms, Jones is even bigger and longer than Jordan Mailata. While Jones' weight is bordering on concerning, his insane length and size will be coveted by Pittsburgh's new general managers.

Fellow Ohio State OT Paris Johnson Jr. also fits the bill at 6'6 3/8'' with 36 1/8'' arms and an 85 1/8'' wingspan. However, Johnson could be the first offensive tackle off the board and the Steelers would likely have to trade up in order to acquire him.

With the complete shift in philosophy when it comes to the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line, it's hard not to believe that Andy Weidl has a major part to play here. It it's up to him, he's going to targeting some mammoths on the OL in an effort to replicate what he had with the Eagles.