Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl has quickly endeared himself to the franchise, but he is garnering some traction as a potential general manager for the 2024 hiring cycle already.
The 33rd team named 7 prime candidates to look out for in the 2024 hiring cycle and among the candidates is Weidl. He joined the team prior to last season after Omar Khan was hired as the team’s general manager. Now, with rave reviews coming out of the drafts he has put together in both Philadelphia and what many perceive as an impressive one in Pittsburgh, Weidl has garnered plenty of traction.
“Andy has worked for two outstanding organizations in Philly and Baltimore,’’ former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum said. “He has a big say now in Pittsburgh and how they procure talent there. He’s a little under the radar from a national perspective. But if the Steelers are successful and (QB Kenny) Pickett continues to develop the way they hope, there will be people in that organization like Andy who will get a lot of notoriety and attention.’’
However, there are a few complicating factors that could keep Weidl in Pittsburgh. For one, he is a Pittsburgh native, and so is his wife. After moving back to Pittsburgh a year ago, the Weidls built a new house. Brian Baldinger has heard that Weidl loves working in his home city. Of course, if the right opportunity comes along, Weidl is likely to jump for it, but he does not appear to be looking to move.
“I know he likes it in Pittsburgh. He started his whole professional journey there. He loves Mike Tomlin and loves Omar. He’s not the head guy, but he makes good money, and they listen to him,” Baldinger said. “They believe they’re building something special in Pittsburgh to compete again. I think Andy would go if the right offer came along. But I don’t know that he’ll just run out of there for any job.’’
It seems that the new front office that is coalescing together really likes working together. As such, if Weidl likes Pittsburgh as much as Baldinger says he does, it could take the right opportunity to pull Weidl out of Pittsburgh. For now, the team will move forward with Khan and Weidl leading the charge to build around Kenny Pickett and get the Steelers back into the playoffs.