Orndoff gets FA contract
PITTSBURGH – Waynesburg’s Scott Orndoff had a roller coaster day of emotion Saturday as the NFL draft wrapped up.
The Seton-La Salle High School graduate and Pitt product went unselected in Saturday’s final four rounds, missing an opportunity to become the first Greene County native taken in the draft since Joe Taffoni of Carmichaels by Cleveland in 1967.
“It was a bit of a tough day,” Orndoff said from his parents’ home in Waynesburg. “At the start of the day, I was thinking much about it, but as the day went on and teams that had shown interest passed on me, I started getting nervous.”
As soon as the draft was completed, however, Orndoff got a call from his agent that he had been signed by the Steelers. He chose Pittsburgh over offers from the New York Jets, Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings.
The Steelers made the 6-5, 253-pound tight end a priority free-agent signing, meaning he’ll get the opportunity to join the team for which he grew up cheering.
“Beyond blessed for this opportunity I’ve been given?” Orndoff posted on his Twitter page. “Now the real work begins. #HereWeGo”
Orndoff said the Steelers had contacted his agent before the conclusion of the draft and the two had spoken about his opportunity to stay in Pittsburgh.
“I thought it was the best chance for me to make it,” he said.
Orndoff had a stellar career at Pitt, contributing as a freshman after being one of the highest-recruited tight ends in the country. He caught only 10 passes in his first two seasons with the Panthers, serving more as a blocker. But he emerged as a receiving threat in his final two seasons, catching 48 passes, including 35 for 579 yards and five touchdowns last season, each of which ranked second on the team.
The Steelers were in search of tight end help to add to a depth chart that includes Jesse James, Ladarius Green, Xavier Grimble and David Johnson.
Green, a free-agent signing in 2016, spent the first part of last season on the Physically Unable to Perform List because of offseason ankle surgery, then suffered a concussion late in the season.
Johnson, who turns 30 in August, is the Steelers’ best blocking tight end and could be the player with whom Orndoff competes for a roster spot.
“I know my role is going to be as a blocker in the NFL and I’m OK with that,” Orndoff said recently. “And special teams are going to be a must. That’s fine. I did both a lot at Pitt, even into this year.
“I’ve always enjoyed covering kicks and working on special teams.”
Orndoff joins Miami Dolphins linebacker Mike Hull, a Canon-McMillan graduate who went to Penn State, former Pitt teammate Dorian Johnson, a Belle Vernon graduate who was drafted Saturday in the fourth round by Arizona, and Akil Blount, a Taylorstown native who played at Linsly Prep in West Virginia, as former area high school football players on NFL rosters.