Because it isn’t highly visible, it might not feel like much of a change. But for those who follow closely, and you know we do, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ scouting staff has undergone massive changes since Omar Khan was hired in May 2022, barely more than a year ago.
Some of the changes are clear to every fan. Kevin Colbert has retired, Khan has been promoted, and Andy Weidl has been tabbed as the franchise’s first ever Assistant GM. But they’re just the tip of the iceberg. Since, Khan has been re-tooling the Steelers’ front office.
From a big picture view, when Colbert left, there were 15 scouts listed on the team’s website. Some with bigger roles than others, Pro and College Scouting Coordinators all the way down to interns but 15 in total.
Today? There are 19 officially listed and that doesn’t even include Ike Taylor or Merril Hoge, who have assistant scouting roles in the organization that aren’t confirmed on the team site. So really, it’s 21. That’s a pretty serious step up, a 40 percent increase from where it was under Colbert.
Steelers’ Scouting Staff
Under Khan: 21 People
Under Colbert: 15 People
It’s a big change.
Several names under Colbert’s tenure have moved on. Either they took new jobs, retired, or are moving onto something else. They include Brandon Hunt, Mark Gorscak, Rick Reiprish, and Bruce McNorton. Hunt’s exit was predictable after losing out on the GM job while Gorscak is moving to other areas of football. Reiprish and McNorton’s terms for leaving are a little less clear.
But that relatively short list of names means a lot of people have stayed. Few, however, have kept their title, with several seeing promotions since Khan took over. The only ones who haven’t seen a title change are:
Mark Bruener – College/Area Scout
Mike Butler – College/Area Scout
Chidi Iwuoma – College/Area Scout
Tosin Kazeem – Football Analyst/Area Scout
That’s the list, just four names. Three true and blue area scouts and Kazeem, who partially works in the team’s analytics department but has also occasionally been spotted on the scouting trail in the New York/Northeast area. Many other holdovers have seen promotions, names like Dave Petett and Dan Colbert, while others have had demotions at least in titles like Phil Kreidler.
Then there’s the new hires. And there’s been a lot of them. Last year, people like Mark Sadowski and Casey Weidl were brought onboard while this year, the Steelers filled out their area scouts with Zach Crockett, Jarrod Highberger, and Jim Ward.
None of this is inherently good or bad. It’s just different. And we like following and focusing on the change upstairs. On paper and in theory, I do like the team having a larger scouting department now. Scouting is a constant and demanding job. Having more people to help, to put in all the work necessary to scout 1,000-plus players and whittle that list down to 7-8 draft selections can’t hurt.
Time will tell how well the Steelers draft under Khan. The first class looks good, though, of course, it’s doubtful it’ll be this shiny and exciting three years from now. Football’s full of surprises, good and bad. But just as Khan has put his stamp on the roster, he’s put his stamp on those in the front office who report to him, too.
