I could see if you were just scanning the headlines on this website, you might panic at the title of the article. Fear not, as Steelers GM Kevin Colbert is not the effected party in this case. There were rumors of the Panthers raiding the Steelers’ front office after former Steelers minority owner, David Tepper, purchased the majority share in the Carolina Panthers. While it was unlikely that Colbert would be lured away this late in his career, it was only a matter of time before some members of the Steelers organization defected to Carolina.
On Monday morning, Ed Bouchette of The Athletic announced in a tweet that Samir Suleiman was the newest member of the Panthers front office.
The tweet reads, “Carolina Panthers raid Steelers again. Hiring Samir Suleiman to be their capologist and more.”
As written by Dave Bryan back in 2013, Suleiman was hired to be the heir apparent to Omar Kahn, who currently serves as the Director of Business and Football Administration.
Suleiman, a 1997 graduate of James Madison University, originally served as a consultant for the Steelers from July 2011 to August 2012 after leaving the St. Louis Rams in early 2009 after nine years of assisting president of football operations/general manager Jay Zygmunt. Prior to his stint with the Rams, Suleiman worked with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the NFL management council.
We can possibly look for the Steelers to make some corresponding hires and/or promotions in the future to compensate for this loss in their front office.
