By Jacob Jensen
SteelerNation.com
Wednesday, the New York Jets fired their GM Mike Maccagnan after only four years of holding the position. This news made me very thankful to be a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. As Steelers fans, we have been spoiled by amazing owners and an amazing GM. Over the years, Steelers GM Kevin Colbert has been both criticized and praised. He has spent 19 years with the Steelers and I think it’s time for a Kevin Colbert appreciation article.
Kevin Colbert was born in 1957. He started his career as a scout for the Miami Dolphins. In 1990, he joined the Detroit Lions as the Pro Scouting Director. He held that position until 1999, when he joined the Steelers as the Director of Football Operations in 2000. While holding this position, he helped build two championship teams in 2005 and 2008. He has received a lot of credit for those championships. He was then named the first ever General Manager in Steelers history in 2010 and in 2016, he also got the position of vice president added to his responsibilities.
Colbert has done many amazing things over his career, but he still manages to get criticized. Yes, Colbert has missed on some draft picks (Artie Burns, Jarvis Jones, ect.), but he has also been spot on with many more. He and the Rooney’s have also done a great job of building the team through the NFL Draft, and supplementing weak spots through free agency. I believe this is the correct formula for not only creating championship teams, but also teams that constantly put out watchable football. In 2012 and 2013, the Steelers had a very short rebuilding period where they managed to maintain a .500 record. Think about the teams that are constant big spenders, and think about how successful they have been. It works out sometimes, but then there is a recovery period those teams go through when they are trying to recover from all the money they've spent.
Since 2000 when Colbert joined the Steelers, the team has maintained a constant theme of success. I expect more of that success, especially after this off-season, which might go down as one of the best in Colbert’s career. Colbert has done an amazing job at keeping the Steelers up there with the best of them for the last 19 years, and I think #SteelerNation owes him a thank you.
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