Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert reportedly stepping down after the 2022 NFL Draft

For 22 NFL seasons, Kevin Colbert has been a huge part of the Pittsburgh Steelers front office. Although his title has changed, Colbert has been the de facto General Manager of the Steelers since the 2000 NFL season. But according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Colbert is stepping down from his position with the Steelers following the 2022 NFL Draft.

Colbert came to the Steelers in 2020 under the title of Director of Football Operations. Colbert had spent the previous 10 seasons as the pro scouting Director of the Detroit Lions. During his time in Pittsburgh, Colbert‘s official title changed several times. In 2010 he became the first ever general manager in the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise. In 2016 he added the title of vice president along with general manager.

In recent years, Colbert has been going on one year contracts as he contemplate how much longer he wanted to stay in the NFL. Although the Steelers GM is reportedly stepping down, it does not mean his time in the NFL, or with the Steelers, is definitely at an end, according to Rapoport and Tom Pelissero who collaborated on the report:

When Ozzie Newsome stepped away as GM of the Baltimore Ravens in 2019 and gave way to Eric DeCosta, he stayed on in an advisory role. In similar fashion, it is conceivable that Colbert could stay on in Pittsburgh in the short term.

In Colbert’s time in Pittsburgh, the Steelers have had a record of 225–124–3. The team has made three Super Bowls, winning two of them in 2005 and 2008. In all, the Steelers have qualified for the postseason in 13 of Colbert’s completed 21 years in the NFL.

According to Rapoport and Pelissero, the Steelers do have two in-house candidates for the position:

Now, Pittsburgh will reload with a new QB and a new GM. They do have at least two key in-house potential candidates in VP of football and business administration Omar Khan and pro scouting coordinator Brandon Hunt.

Kevin Colbert is a native of Pittsburgh as he attended North Catholic High School and graduated from Robert Morris University.

Exactly where the Steelers go from here remains to be seen, but as of now, it appears to be a busy offseason as the Pittsburgh Steelers will likely be replacing quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and general manager Kevin Colbert in the coming months. But for now, the Steelers have one game remaining in the 2021 NFL season with a slight possibility of qualifying for the playoffs.

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