2026 NFL DRAFT PLAYER PROFILE
SAM HECHT
CENTER
KANSAS STATE
6’4, 297
Sam Hecht really saw his stock rise from a fantastic week at the Senior Bowl putting him into day 2 consideration. From watching the practices and some 1v1 clips, he might have been the best OL in Mobile. What he lacks in true bulk, he makes up for with excellent technique, heavy hands and footwork, but he did show the ability to anchor and displayed a nasty streak, which I love. I think he would be a solid fit for a McDaniel zone-based rushing scheme where he can use his athleticism and awareness to be effective in space or on the move to the second level. He has enough strength and frame to execute power and gap runs, but he is not a player I would draft to play in the style of offense exclusively. The combine testing could go a long way to cementing him into day 2 of the draft. His weight and strength will be important to alleviate concerns of his slightly smaller frame. From a pass blocking perspective, he does a good job of understanding leverage which keeps him from getting knocked from his position easily, and displayed good hand placement and above average awareness to switch offs and stunts.
One area of concern outside of his strength, weight, and frame, was that he can look a little stiff in his pass sets. You would prefer him to look more natural and fluid off the snap. It didn’t seem to limit him in Mobile when the drills were focused on 1v1reps, but it is almost as if he was performing as he was trained instead of naturally reacting, but that is a little nit-picky of his overall performance at the Senior Bowl. He was dominant there all week.
I need to watch more tape and get a better feel for this Center class, but I am not fully ready to give Hecht a full seal stamp of approval to slide in immediately and be drafted to be the starting Center. I think players like Jake Slaughter, Connor Lew and Logan Jones might be in that conversation. I think how the Chargers address the IOL in free agency will also be a big factor in how they approach the Center position in the draft. If the OG spots are filled with quality vets, then I can see a rookie center making sense, but I have a hard time seeing limited draft capital used to have rookies starting at Guard and Center next season.
Sam Hecht is my draft crush so far, Erick. I think he’s phenomenal and every criticism you will hear thrown at him (too light, not long enough) was also thrown at Linderbaum, Jason Kelce and Aaron Brewer when they came out.
I think he could be one of the steals of the draft (whoever takes him on Day 2 or beyond). His technique is special. My notes and some clips below.
o Watched games v Oklahoma State (2024), Iowa State (2025), Texas Tech (2025) & Oklahoma State (2025)
o Summary:
Hecht is an underweight Center prospect who offsets his lack of ideal mass and length with great fundamentals and impressive athleticism. He is an ideal fit for a Shanahan scheme and the success of lighter players like Aaron Brewer and Tanor Bortolini should pave the way for Hecht to be considered as early as Round 2 by an NFL team. His anchor and hands are impressive in pass pro, but against monster DTs (like Lee Hunter from Texas Tech) he lost some reps. Otherwise, negatively graded plays on his tape were vanishingly rare and he was a pleasure to watch, executing nearly every assignment, with a promising future.
o Strengths:
§ Plays with great pad level and inside hands combining to produce a rock-solid anchor in pass protection even against DTs who outweigh him by 25+ pounds. His thick lower half generates maximal strength into the block.
§ Hip fluidity and knee flexion are first class. Mirrors rushers better than any Center in the class and routinely executes two separate blocks on the play in pass pro.
§ Stays connected to blocks.
§ Pulling in pass protection isn’t a problem for him.
§ Excellent reach blocker and lead puller on wide runs. Makes it look easy moving quickly and smoothly using angles to block effectively.
§ Down blocking is pristine angling his body expertly to seal the gap.
§ Didn’t allow a sack in his college career (and only 2 hits) from 850 pass reps.
§ Turned heads at the Senior Bowl with his play.
o Question marks:
§ Occasionally his lack of mass and length show up in pass pro against monster DTs (a few tough reps against Lee Hunter (Texas Tech) in 2025).
§ Lots of RPOs and quick releases in Kansas State’s Offense. May find it harder in the NFL with a heavier volume of dropback passing and bigger, more athletic DTs.
§ Didn’t face many top college Defenses playing in the Big 12.
§ At his size, teams who run a predominantly Gap running scheme may not view him as a fit (although the tape suggests he would be fine).
Thanks for the reply Alister. I was watching Senior Bowl practice while I was at my daughter’s cheer competition in Disney (to the damnation of my wife) and I made a note on my phone about a few players I liked, and he was one of them. I think the buzz on him will grow and with a good testing he could easily slide into day 2. I have the Oklahoma State game on my DVR so I will have to watch him in regular game play, but he is definitely one of “my guys” this early in the process.
I’ve always enjoyed reading Rob Staton of seahawksdraftblog.com for his OL takes and contrarian views along with his TEF (Trench Explosion Formula) and he’s got Hecht as a 3rd round, OC4 currently. Ultimately though I think every Center has to be judged against Linderbaum and for me, I feel most comfortable with the cost to acquire Linderbaum over any other IOL that we could go after in FA.
I also kind of only prefer Linderbaum at Center in FA and wouldn’t necessarily go after OC2, 3 etc. In the scenario where TL goes elsewhere, I say go sign 2 quality Guards and go into the Draft knowing that by the 2nd round you’re forced into taking a Center and I don’t know how comfortable I’d feel about over-drafting Hecht and needing to start him too soon.
I’m not opposed to either approach as with 5 picks in this draft, we’re likely to see FA fill the majority of holes on the depth chart but we’re still likely going to need 1-2 positions that we’ll be relying on a Rookie to fill and my guess is 1 IOL and TE2.
On that last nugget, check out Dallen Bentley of Utah as a TE. I don’t think Gadsden is best served in the Y-TE spot and I don’t really like the FA class for potential starting Y’s and think there are some quality guys like Bentley who can provide that while signing backup level guys.
I agree with this take, but Linderbaum is going to have a bunch of interest from many teams including following his old coach to NY. With Oweh, Mack and possibly Zion requiring big paydays to stay someone has to have no seat when the music stops. In no world do I see TL getting a blank check situation from Hortiz, nor do I see a gross overpay to secure him. So far we have seen no appetite for Hortiz to swim in the deep part of the pool in free agency, but he has really left himself in a spot where he has no choice but to put his swimmies on and wade out into the water. With C being such a cerebral position I would prefer a vet there who has experience seeing a defense and calling protections. He’s the QB of the line, if he starts to get confused, you get the Bozeman “A” gap open door reps. So, I wouldn’t necessarily mind a McGovern or Pocic there as a plan B.
Even if Hortiz secures three new IOL starters in FA, he needs to fortify the depth in the draft. Someone like Hecht or Brian Parker could be drafted late day 2 or early day three and develop at C. I do think FA should be spent on at least one player with OG/OT flex like Vera-Tucker, because as positive as Slater’s progress has been reported, until we see him hit the field for real reps, he can’t be considered a lock to resume where he left off.
As far as the TE, I think this has to be a FA addition. Again, the lack of picks really hamstrings the position targets. Plus, with McDaniel here for one or maybe two seasons this could be a good spot to grab a player that fits his scheme for a short contract. I have seen a bunch of Darren Waller intrigue because of his success in Miami last season, but he will be 34 to start the season and his name might get him a bigger contract than we are willing to give. I think players like Harrison Bryant, Kylen Granson, and Greg Dulcich might be great fits at a more reasonable length and cost of contract.