PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – While Omar Khan has only been the general manager of the Steelers for the last couple of years, he’s been with the organization for two decades. There is an understanding of what Mike Tomlin wants and Khan and his team go looking for it.
This year it has its own designation.
"Steelers DNA."
It was first brought up by Mike Tomlin before the NFL Draft started earlier in the week. And what it means is judged by the players they drafted.
Probably best described as tough, high football IQ, loves the game along with all of the obvious qualities all teams want in terms of talent, character, etc. Khan described it this way.
“I remember when I got this job, I talked about what it means to be a Steeler, and I could be up here for three days talking about it,” Khan said Saturday. “I think when you're in this for as long as we are, you just sort of know, and that's why the process of getting out there and getting to know the guys is so important to us.”
“We spend a lot of time on the road. We spend a lot of time meeting with guys at the combine. It's more than just about who they are as a player. It's who they are as a person, too. We get to know them on the road and bring them here and the combine. You just sort of know when you're in this. You get a feel for those guys. There are times we leave these dinners or these meetings, we're like, not sure. But there's sometimes where you're like, that guy, he's one of us. You just sort of know.”
You see it really in a player like linebacker Jack Sawyer. Aggressive player who loves football and makes plays even though he doesn’t test well in combine events. Just a football player. I think Steelers DNA as described by Tomlin and Khan would be the same type of player they’ve valued in Pittsburgh since 1969.
It’s continuity between a head coach and front office paying off to where they know what each other wants. They have struggled to recognize that DNA in the last few drafts, let’s see how these seven players stack up in a few years.
Tomlin observations
They aren’t Tomlinisms, rather a couple of clever answers to questions about the NFL Draft.
Asked about drafting all Big 10 players except for the last pick?
“I don't know if that was an agenda. I just think there's a lot of teams in the Big Ten now.”
With a pair of 5’9” running backs, did you desire to find a player like Kaleb Johnson who is 6’1”?
“(I’m) Less concerned about the measurables and more concerned about the play style and the resume.”
Drafting Carson Bruener, the son of Steelers scout and former Steelers tight end Mark Bruener.
“It is a worthy resume. It's just an awesome side note that his father is a Steeler and got drafted by this organization, I think, 30 years ago.”
How do you see Yahya Black fitting into the defense?
“He's a big chassis, okay. There's F-150s. He's like an F-350.”