Kevin Colbert reiterates Steelers are not averse to trading up or down in draft

Some teams might swear by the famous draft value chart, Kevin Colbert said Monday, but the Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t one of them.

With speculation swirling the Steelers are prime candidates to trade up in the first round, Colbert said the organization will attach its own value to certain picks based on the particular player they might be targeting. The Steelers general manager said that might be less than the oft-cited chart says, or it might be more.

“We don’t use a chart, and we know other teams will use a chart,” Colbert said during a joint pre-draft news conference with coach Mike Tomlin at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. “And we know when we call them, they are gonna say, ‘Well, it doesn’t match our chart value.’ That’s fine, they can do it. But in our minds, we have to spend what we want to spend to get a certain player, and we (likewise) have to match the demand if teams are trying to trade up to us.”

Colbert referenced the two previous times the Steelers traded up in the first round, each of which resulted in acquiring a player with a cemented legacy in franchise history. In 2003, Colbert engineered a trade of the No. 27 overall pick and third- and sixth- rounders to move up to No. 16, where they took future Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu.

By “the chart,” the Steelers got a bargain. Three years later, though, they “overpaid” — per the chart — with the Nos. 96 and 129 overall picks to move from No. 32 to No. 25 to get receiver Santonio Holmes.

“We said (in 2003), ‘Look, that player, (Polamalu), is warranted at getting picked at 16,’ ” Colbert said, “so we were comfortable in making that trade.

“Santonio, we went from 32 to 25, we gave up a 3 and a 4. People say, ‘Well, you give up too much.’ He caught the touchdown that won the Super Bowl (at the end of the 2008 season), so was it too much? No. So every year it’s relative.”

Based on their needs and their 10 picks, the Steelers could be in an ideal position to move up in the first round to get one of the premier inside linebackers available, Devin White or Devin Bush.

Colbert, of course, did not mention any draft prospects by name. In more general terms, he said a team cannot depend on trading up or plan on trading up because of the fluid nature of the draft.

“Until you get on the clock, those things won’t happen in great detail,” Colbert said.

Hey, Steelers Nation, get the latest news about the Pittsburgh Steelers here.