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In the early evening of Tuesday May 24, 2022, Aditi Kinkhabwala — until recently with NFL Network — reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers were slated to hire Philadelphia Eagles vice president of player personnel Andy Weidl as assistant general manager.
“That means signs point to longtime Steelers exec Omar Khan emerging as winner of the search to replace Kevin Colbert,” she predicted.
Twenty minutes later, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Khan, the Steelers’ vice president of football & business administration, was expected to be named the team’s new general manager.
BREAKING: Omar Khan, the Steelers vice president of football and business administration who has been with the organization for 21 years, is expected to be named the team’s new general manager, replacing Kevin Colbert, per multiple sources .
Two minutes after that, Adam Schefter, senior NFL insider for ESPN, reported essentially the same news, with Dulac circling back around and confirming that the Steelers are adding Weidl as assistant G.M.
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Omar Khan and Andy Weidl Were 2 of 6 Finalists for the Job
Khan and Weidl were two of a half-dozen finalists for the position, with each of the finalists getting two separate interviews.
The other finalists were: Steelers pro scouting director Brandon Hunt; Titans vice president of player personnel Ryan Cowden; Buccaneers vice president of player personnel John Spytek; and former Bills general manager Doug Whaley, the latter of whom worked in Pittsburgh’s front office before leaving to become assistant G.M. of the Bills in 2010. Earlier this week Whaley made a quizzical comment about Steelers Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Ham, which couldn’t have helped his candidacy.
Regardless, the finalists emerged from a group of 16 candidates, which included ESPN analyst Louis Riddick and Ran Carthon, the son of former New York Giants running back Maurice Carthon.
The Steelers Have Been Anticipating a Changing of the Guard
On January 28, longtime Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert formally announced that he would be retiring, several weeks after reports emerged that he planned to step down following the 2022 NFL Draft. Colbert has been with the Steelers for 22 seasons and took over as General Manager in 2010 after a decade as the director of football operations. He has been working on a series of one-year contracts in recent years, an indication that he was considering retirement for the past several years. In fact, he signed his final one-year deal in March 2021.
As for Weidl, he began his career in the NFL as a Steelers player personnel assistant from 1998-99. After a stint as a scout with the New Orleans Saints, Weidl worked as a scout for the Baltimore Ravens from 2005-16. He joined the Eagles in 2016 as assistant director of player personnel and was promoted to director of player personnel in 2018 before ascending to vice president of player personnel in 2019.
Khan has been with the Steelers for 21 years. It remains to be seen whether Hunt will remain with the organization, having been passed over for the general manager and assistant general manager roles. A week ago, Hunt interviewed to become assistant G.M. of the Buffalo Bills; prior to that he also interviewed for a front office job with the Eagles.
Colbert’s contract expires on May 31, 2022, so expect a formal announcement about the hiring’s in the very near future.
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