Kevin Colbert Discusses Dwayne Haskins Signing

Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert joined Dan Sileo on The National Football Show, providing further insight into the team’s signing of quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

A Heisman finalist with the Buckeyes in 2018, Colbert shared that the Steelers loved Haskins in the 2019 NFL Draft.

“Dwayne Haskins is a young, talented quarterback,” Colbert said. “He came into the draft the same year we drafted Devin Bush. He was the 14th pick. We loved him coming out of Ohio State.”

While the organization believed Haskins needed another year with Ohio State at the time, Colbert and his staff found the opportunity to add him this offseason was simply too good to pass up.

“We always felt that he probably wasn’t ready for the NFL level,” Colbert said. “Players make decisions for whatever reason, that’s their decision. And he got put into a situation that didn’t work out for him.He’s a good kid. He’s a talented player. He wanted to be here, he wanted another opportunity, and we were like ‘sure, why not?’”

Even if Haskins does not evolve into Pittsburgh’s quarterback of the future, Colbert is excited about the depth and competition he will add to the Steelers quarterback room.

“We have four quarterbacks that have played in NFL games, three of them have started NFL games,” he added. “So when we have some strength at that position, it was really an easy decision for us. And Dwayne does strengthen the competition at that position.”

Haskins was waived by Washington in late December after the young quarterback was photographed maskless at a strip club, in clear violation of the league’s COVID-19 protocols and mid-pandemic common sense.

Haskins had a rocky first two seasons in Washington, passing for 12 touchdowns with 14 interceptions and completing just over 60% of his passes.

The Steelers are hopeful Haskins can flash the talent he demonstrated in his final season at Ohio State, where he completed 70% of his passes for 4,831 yards with 50 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. He finished third in Heisman Trophy voting in 2018.