‘It doesn’t mean it’s over’

This weekend marked the final draft for Kevin Colbert as typical supervisor of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

A 22-yr veteran of the group, Colbert experienced put in the previous 12 drafts as GM of the black and gold, selecting the players who have assisted sustain Pittsburgh’s unprecedented accomplishment (18 straight seasons at .500 or greater). It was declared months prior to this weekend’s proceedings that Colbert would phase down right after the 2022 NFL Draft, while he’ll likely take on a distinct job in the corporation. Pittsburgh has nonetheless to announce a alternative.

Adhering to Working day 3 of the draft on Saturday, through which Colbert and Co. manufactured 4 options, the GM got emotional contemplating again on his legacy with the club.

“I don’t want to say better than,” Colbert told reporters when requested how he felt he was leaving the Steelers. “I am very pleased to say we extra to that [trophy] place. It was four trophies. There was 4 of them when we obtained here. And you understood the task. You feel about DMR [late owner Dan Rooney] and being capable to add to that area usually means a ton. It would not indicate it is above. The next stage, I mean we gotta get much more than, and we’ll under no circumstances eliminate that. But it indicates a ton.”

Because 2000, when Colbert joined the business and commenced jogging Pittsburgh’s drafts, the Steelers have selected 21 Pro Bowlers, seven initial-team All-Execs and a Corridor of Famer (Troy Polamalu). Pittsburgh gained its fifth and sixth Super Bowl titles in the course of the 2005 and 2008 seasons even though Colbert was director of football operations. Given that 2011, when Colbert turned the initially Steelers staff to have the title “general manager,” the workforce has absent 111-64-2 in the common year, designed the postseason 7 periods, gained four AFC North titles and reached just one Tremendous Bowl.

“His contributions to this organization for 22-moreover many years have been fantastic and requirements no endorsement from me,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Saturday. “Pretty frankly, it speaks for itself.”

Some of Colbert’s most noteworthy draft picks considering the fact that soaring to normal manager contain Cameron Heyward (2011, initially spherical), David DeCastro (2012, initially round), Le’Veon Bell (2013, 2nd round), T.J. Watt (2017, 1st spherical), JuJu Smith-Schuster (2017, second spherical) and 2021 rookies Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth.

Colbert oversaw the drafting of franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, when he was the third signal-caller taken following Eli Manning and Philip Rivers. Now Colbert is pursuing Significant Ben out the door, but not devoid of trying to exchange him. Just after including veteran Mitchell Trubisky to the roster in free of charge company, the Steelers took Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett with the 20th overall variety, the initial initially-spherical QB taken by Pittsburgh considering the fact that Roethlisberger.

But Colbert didn’t stop there. As he has been wont to do in the course of his occupation, Colbert drafted superior-worth receivers in George Pickens at No. 52 and Calvin Austin III at No. 138 and a brother of a current Steelers participant in Connor Heyward at No. 208. Then, for the 1st time considering the fact that 1968, Pittsburgh took a next quarterback, South Dakota State’s Chris Oladokun, deep in the seventh round, just in circumstance. It was Colbert’s closing assortment as Steelers GM.

“It is really like a video game,” Colbert stated. “When a game arrives to an conclusion, you value it and you assume about it, but you genuinely will replicate on it when it really is peaceful and you are by by yourself and it really is like, ‘What a moment, what do I go to do future?’ I never know.”