Omar Khan has been widely considered a success in his short time as the Pittsburgh Steelers general manager, as his draft haul in 2023 was one of the best in the league. Offensive tackle Broderick Jones, cornerback Joey Porter Jr. and nose tackle Keeanu Benton were all starters in their rookie seasons. Nick Herbig also showed promise as the No. 3 outside linebacker. The organization is also embracing analytics more under Khan compared to Kevin Colbert, who had an old-school scout background.
Khan had a solid free agency in 2023, and it’s been impressive so far in 2024. The Steelers acquired quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields on cheap contracts. Pittsburgh’s QB depth chart is under contract for under $4.5 million total. The Steelers also signed former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen to three-year, $41 million deal, making him the highest-paid free agent signing in franchise history.
Last month, former Steelers cornerback and current team scout Ike Taylor gave some insight on how Khan operates as the general manager.
“I tell (Omar) all the time like, you’ve been waiting for this moment all your life. You sat damn near 20 years to get this opportunity to be a GM,” Taylor said on the Bleav in Steelers podcast. “And I’ve seen him live in action, leading up to the draft, the month of the draft, and the three days of the draft. I told O, you turn into a totally different person on them draft days. He’s locked in, that hawk side come out of O on draft day.
“But, that’s what I was most proud of, seeing O and the way he moved in those three days of the draft. He was on a totally different planet when it came down really between everyone sitting in that draft room, owners included. They had to understand how locked in O was and we all respected that.”
It’s not just Khan who Taylor has profound respect for, however. He thinks the whole scouting department is elite.
“I feel like we got some of the best scouts. I feel like Kelvin Fisher is one of the best scouts in the world and I’m glad he’s in the building. I feel like [Mark Sadowski] is one of the best scouts in the world, glad he’s in the building. I feel like Dan Colbert is one of the best scouts in the world and he’s in our building,” Taylor said on the latest Bleav in Steelers podcast episode.
Dan Colbert is the son of former Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert. He serves as the director of college scouting for the team, while Mark Sadowski is the director of player scouting and Kelvin Fisher is a senior scouting assistant.
While Taylor highlighted three names in the Steelers scouting department, he especially gave props to Fisher.
“Kelvin’s like the OG, Kelvin Fisher, he got an eye. He got an eye. His eval be on point. Whether you like, he don’t care about the popular opinion. [Sadowski]’s been around a long time, went to Tulane with Omar [Khan], been around with the Saints, Chicago. [Sadowski] has a lot of unpopular people he like too, he’s been doing it for a long time.”
“I can go down the whole line, but them three I just named. They all bring a different style to the table. Fish man, I’m just going to give him his props. Fish is that dude in the scouting world. Fish takes pride in finding people in the bottom of the draft,” Taylor said.
After a year of preparation, Khan and his team of scouts’ work will be showcased this week when the 2024 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday night.