ADAMS TWP — Kevin Colbert held out his hand to a young boy.

“Hi, my name is Kevin,” he said. “What's your name?”

“Hunter,” the boy replied.

“Have a great week, Hunter.”

Colbert, the general manger of the Pittsburgh Steelers, shook the hand of every one of the approximately 50 participants at the Mars Youth Football Camp Wednesday, shortly after speaking to the group.

Who knows? There may be a future Steeler in that fold.

“The best thing about a camp, as I told the kids, is about being active,” Colbert said. “Be it baseball or soccer or lacrosse or hockey or football, being active is important. Of course, football is our game, so I'm kind of a little more prejudice about our game, but just to be out here and active is such a positive thing.”

So is the emphasis of the camp.

The coaches and a handful of Mars varsity football players instructing at the Mars youth football camp are stressing fundamentals to the young participants, age 7 through 12 — especially when it comes to tackling technique.

Helmet-to-helmet hits, concussions and the development of CTE, a degenerative brain disease found in athletes with a history of repetitive brain trauma, are hot-button issues in the NFL these days.

Colbert has been well aware of that for years, as has the entire Steelers' organization, he said.

“That's something (head coach Mike) Tomlin has been well ahead of,” Colbert said. “When the initiatives were changed five, six years ago, he made it simple: Don't use the head and don't hit the head.

“If you really think about those two applications in our game, if you don't use the head and you don't hit the head, your chances of safe play are much better.”

That doesn't always translate to the football field, however.

Last season, NFL players suffered 291 concussions, up from 250 the previous season.

Colbert saw first-hand the inherent danger of the game when Steelers' inside linebacker Ryan Shazier suffered a severe spinal injury while making a tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals in December.

Still, Colbert thinks the game is on the right track when it comes to mitigating the risks.

“In our league, the players respect each other a lot more than they did five, 10 years ago. It's a much cleaner game,” Colbert said. “Guys try to take the head out of it. Whatever we do, we have to do it better. Making our game safer will make it better so kids like these can play the same type of game we've all been fortunate to have.”

The NFL may not be done regulating the danger from the game.

The league has already moved touchbacks to the 25-yard line to incentivize touchbacks. The new Alliance of American Football, which will open its inaugural season in 2019, has eliminated kickoffs altogether.

Colbert said there is a fine line that needs to be walked when it comes to making the game safer but maintaining the thrill.

“Safety will always be first and foremost,” Colbert said. “The new rules — we'll see where they lead. Hopefully we do make it a safer game, but still be the exciting game we know.”

Colbert is gearing up for his 18th season as the Steelers' director of player personnel/general manager.

And his second season dealing with a potential Le'Veon Bell training camp holdout.

The running back was given the franchise tag for the second consecutive season. Last year, Bell held out until the week before the regular season. He has intimated he will do that again this year.

“We don't talk about players or individual contracts or anything like that,” Colbert said. “There's really no updates.”

Colbert grew up on the North Side, not far from Three Rivers Stadium. He went to North Catholic High School and coached basketball, baseball and football at various stops before becoming a scout with the Miami Dolphins in 1985.

Colbert lives in the Mars area.

He's one of only 32 general managers in the game and that is not lost on him.

“You cherish the opportunity to have a career in the game that you love,” Colbert said. “Obviously, it's my hometown, but you really don't think about it all that often because you're caught up in the moment. Someday, after my career is over, I'll think about it. Right now, you're just thankful for the opportunity and focused on doing what you can do to accomplish your goals.

“The job's really the same,” he added. “It's all about trying to win championships.”