PITTSBURGH — The entire football world seems enamored with the Steelers promoting Omar Khan to replace Kevin Colbert as their general manager.
This is the Steelers Way, after all, the Steelers doing Steelers things, the Steelers promoting from within, the Steelers again serving as an example to the rest of the league and proving that stability matters.
I guess.
But what about the Steelers winning just three playoff games in the past 11 years, including zero in the past five, and in such a state that they're the Vegas favorite to finish last in the AFC North? What about the Steelers mangling the 2016 draft (nobody's left) and not doing much better in 2018 (unless Chuks Okorafor suddenly becomes Jackie Slater, or Terrell Edmunds suddenly becomes something more than a player nobody wanted for more than $2.5 million this season).
The jury's still out on the 2019 draft, too, seeing as the Steelers traded up to take Devin Bush 10th overall and now are at crossroads with receiver Diontae Johnson, who is headed into the final year of his rookie deal. Do you pay him the going rate?
If they move on from both after this season, (the Steelers did not pick up Bush's fifth-year option), that draft will have been below the line, too, unless you like the picks after those guys. And the picks after those guys were Justin Layne, Benny Snell, Zach Gentry, Sutton Smith, Isaiah Buggs, Ulysees Gilbert and Derwin Gray.
That's a long way of saying Khan, 45, has his work cut out over the four years of his new contract.
I'd love to sit here and grade the promotion and analyze his football history, but this is a different kind of hire. Not totally the Steeler Way, after all. It's basically promoting a cap guy, a money guy — and a very smart one — into a role the Steelers have traditionally filled with a personnel guy.
That's why some are surprised the job didn't go to Steelers pro scouting coordinator Brandon Hunt, and it'll be interesting to see what becomes of him. It's also likely why the Steelers have created an assistant GM role and given it to long-time NFL personnel man (and Mt. Lebanon native) Andy Weidl. It was no surprise to see Weidl move on from a key personnel role with the Eagles after the team fired his brother Casey, the director of scouting operations, and allowed the contract of his longtime mentor (and ex-Steelers GM) Tom Donahoe to expire.
Weidl has been part of many triumphs over the years. He worked for the Ravens and reportedly lobbied hard for drafting players such as Haloti Ngata. He was part of the Eagles' push to a Super Bowl championship, as well, although, like all personnel people, he shared in some failures. I don't know if he had any role at all (hope not) in the Eagles trading with a divisional rival (the Cowboys) to move a few spots up in last year's draft for DeVonta Smith and pass on Micah Parsons, who went two picks later to ... the Cowboys, with the Eagles' original pick.
But back to Khan. This isn't like when the Penguins hired Jim Rutherford or Ron Hextall, or the Pirates hired Ben Cherington, or the Steelers hired Colbert. In those cases, you had a track record to evaluate. You could point to specific personnel decisions and specific ways of running an organization or a scouting department.
This is different. Doesn't mean it's worse. Doesn't mean it's better. Khan is widely regarded as an excellent people person. He has done a masterful job navigating the Steelers through some choppy salary cap waters. He was part of two Super Bowl-championship teams. But he has also interviewed for at least eight GM jobs over the past decade — Houston, Seattle, Carolina, Miami (twice), St. Louis, New York (Jets) and Chicago — and been passed over every time.
Was that because those teams wanted more of a scouting background? Or did they miss an opportunity to do things a little differently?
This was Erik Edholm of Yahoo Sports when the Bears were interviewing Khan: "I'm a scout guy. I am. But picking an accountant type for GM and loading up your staff with strong talent evaluators might be a trend to watch. Might not be sweeping development this year but hearing more openness to this model."
I'm open to it, as well. I like the idea of a two-man team with Weidl. In some ways, it seems like a perfect marriage. The money guy and the football guy. But I can't wholly endorse it just because Art Rooney II and the Steelers executed it.
It's not like they've been doing everything right lately.
