As a seventh-round pick in the 2002 NFL Draft, Brett Keisel took a long, curious route into a starting role for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After working behind the likes of Aaron Smith and Kimo von Oelhoffen from 2002-05 along the Steelers’ stout defensive line, Keisel works his way into a starting role in 2006 and never looked back, playing a key role for the black and gold through the 2014 season, starting 114 career games for Pittsburgh.
Quite the find for then-GM Kevin Colbert in the final round of the 2002 draft.
Comfortably retired for nearly a decade now, Keisel — appearing on the Not Just Football with Cam Heyward podcast earlier in the week — stressed the importance of making an impact on special teams early in his career, which led to him sticking around a long time with the Steelers.