Kevin Colbert, general manager, is retiring after the NFL draft next month and the Pittsburgh Steelers have yet to announce who will be his predecessor. The team has reportedly conducted several interviews over the past several months, but no announcement has been made.
To help you understand what the front office may be looking at, let’s get to know each candidate.
Ryan Cowden
Director of player personnel for the Tennessee Titans and has 22 years of NFL experience under his belt, including time spent with the Carolina Panthers in various scouting positions. In his current role with the Titans, Cowden supervises the college and professional scouting department and assists with college scouting and preparation for the NFL Draft.
Assistant general manager of the Indianapolis Colts and has 18 years of experience in the NFL, including time spent with the Seattle Seahawks as a scout and senior executive personnel director.
Joe Wooden
Director of player personnel for the Los Angeles Chargers. Oversees the team's pro and college scouting departments and preparation for the NFL Draft. Wooden has 27 years of front office experience in the NFL, including 16 seasons with the New York Jets in various scouting and player personnel roles.
Co-director of player personnel for the Green Bay Packers. Wojciechowski has 26 years in the NFL, spending time with the Dallas Cowboys as their northeast area scout and the Jacksonville Jaguars as a scout for the southeast region.
Director of college scouting for the Indianapolis Colts. Brown has 22 years of extensive experience in both scouting and personnel for several teams, including the Cleveland Browns, Washington Commanders, and Chicago Bears.
Dan Morgan
Assistant general manager for the Carolina Panthers. Morgan, a former All-Pro NFL linebacker for Carolina has 12 years of front office experience including time spent with the Seattle Seahawks and Buffalo Bills, working his way to the director of pro personnel.
VP of player personnel for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Spytek has spent 18 years in the NFL, including time spent with the Cleveland Browns as their director of college scouting for three seasons. He got his start in the NFL as an operations intern for the Detroit Lions in 2004 and began his work in player personnel with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2005 as an intern.
Joe Hortiz
Director of player personnel for the Baltimore Ravens. In his 24 years of NFL experience, he spent 10 seasons as the teams' director of college scouting and three seasons as a football personnel assistant.
Ran Carthon
Director of personnel for the San Fransisco 49ers. In his previous roles, Carthon spent five seasons as the director of pro personnel with the Los Angeles Rams and four seasons as a pro scout with the Atlanta Falcons. Carthon played three seasons in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts from 2004-2006.
Andy Weidl
VP of player personnel for the Philadelphia Eagles. Weidl holds 25 years of NFL experience with the Baltimore Ravens as a scout for the northeast and east regions. He also spent time with the New Orleans Saints as a northeast scout and a national combine scout. Some may remember him in the Steel City in the late 90s as a personal assistant.
Former front office executive for several NFL teams including Washington in 2001 as a pro scout. Riddick eventually worked his way up to director of pro personnel with Washington and joined the Eagles in 2008 as a scout, before again working his way up to the director of pro personnel. He's worked for ESPN in various on-air roles, including most recently as the color commentator for Monday Night Football.
Keep in mind the team likes to promote from within and could move forward with internal candidates Omar Khan, vice president of football and business administration, or Brandon Hunt, pro scouting coordinator, both of who have reportedly completed interviews.
It looks like the Steelers are covering all bases with the backgrounds of their candidates, and rightfully so if they want to fill the shoes of Colbert. Time is ticking until the draft so an announcement of who will take the helm could come sooner than later.
Who do you want to see as the next general manager, Steeler Nation? Let us know in the comment section below!
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