Draft-Week Buzz
No verified pre-draft news items in the past 30 days for this prospect. See Day 2/3 Team Fits below for projected landing spots and /news.html for the cross-prospect timeline.
Scouting Nugget: Big 12 center
Expanded bio coming soon. This prospect is Interior OL (C/G #8 in the 2026 class.
Background
Kansas State C from Wichita, KS; three-year Big 12 starter at center.
College Production
2023-25 KSU: 36 starts at center, anchored Avery Johnson's protection.
Scouting Take
Smart on-field communicator; plus run-game footwork. Below-average power vs NFL 0-techs.
Draft Projection
Round 3-4. Starting-caliber center in a zone scheme.
Mock-Draft Consensus
| ESPN (Jordan Reid) | PFF Big Board | Jeremiah Top 50 | Consensus Avg | Realistic Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #82 | #84 | — | #83.0 | Picks 60-110 |
30-day trend: Stable
Ranks cross-referenced from ESPN's Jordan Reid top-500, PFF's 2026 Big Board top-200, and Daniel Jeremiah's top-50 (NFL.com). Realistic draft-night range reflects projected team fit and trade scenarios, not just big-board placement.
Advanced Stats & Production
| 2025 PFF pass-block | 81.6 |
| 2025 PFF run-block | 78.9 |
| Pressures allowed | 9 |
| Penalties | 2 |
| Snaps | 868 |
Metrics blended from PFF grade sheets, school box scores, and Combine/Pro Day box scores. Position-specific: QB shows efficiency + turnover rates, WR/TE show route-running + contested-catch, OL shows pass-block grade + pressures allowed, EDGE/IDL show pass-rush win rate + pressure rate, LB/DB show coverage grade + missed-tackle rate.
Sources
Our scouting profile is assembled from these primary sources + cross-checked against ESPN (Kiper / Reid / Miller), PFF's 2026 Big Board, Dane Brugler's The Beast 2026, and Daniel Jeremiah's top-50. See our full methodology and citations.
Day 2 / Day 3 Team Fits
NFL teams that lost a same-position veteran this offseason — and could target Sam Hecht as a Day 2/3 replacement option.
- VERIFIED Las Vegas Raiders: moved on from Alex Cappa (zone-G) on 2026-03-09. [verified]
Picks held: R1 #1; R2 #36 - REPORTED Dallas Cowboys: moved on from Tyler Biadasz (zone-C).
Picks held: R1 #12; R1 #20 via Green Bay - REPORTED New York Jets: moved on from Mekhi Becton (power-guard).
Picks held: R1 #2; R1 #16 via Indianapolis; R2 #33; R2 #44 via Dallas
Confidence: "VERIFIED" departures cite a publication URL (Spotrac, OverTheCap, ESPN, NFL.com, team transactions page) confirming the move and date. "REPORTED" entries come from public free-agency trackers without a single canonical source we could attach. Fits are archetype-and-position based; we are not claiming the team has expressed interest in the prospect.
NFL Scheme Fit
NFL Scheme Fit
- Zone-blocking C / mobile interior OL
San Francisco 49ers · Detroit Lions · Atlanta Falcons · Miami Dolphins
Scheme matches are bucketed from the prospect's height, weight, and (for WRs) archetype tag against a static lookup of which NFL teams currently run each scheme family.
Rookie Contract & Landing-Spot Outlook
Projected Rookie Contract Value
~$5.0M – $8.0M (4-year deal) · Pick range: #65-96 · ~50% guaranteed
Mid-pick band — guarantee % varies pick-to-pick
Best-Case / Worst-Case Landing Spot
Why: IOL listed in their top-5 positional needs; runs a scheme that maximizes his profile.
Year-1 arc: Day-1 starter window with cap-controlled rookie-contract production.
Why: runs a scheme that doesn't naturally amplify his profile.
Year-1 arc: Depth-chart competition + special-teams reps as Year-1 baseline.
Contract band uses the 2026 NFL CBA rookie wage scale projected from the prospect's expected pick range; guarantee % is the slot-default at that pick. Landing-spot best/worst case is derived from TEAMS data (positional needs + scheme overlap minus same-position R1 conflicts) — not a claim that either team has expressed interest.
By the Numbers — 2026 Class Context
- Frame: Among 2026 IOL prospects, his 6-4 / 300 lbs frame sits at the 46th percentile in height and 16th percentile in weight.
- Position class: Sam Hecht is IOL #8 of 37 ranked IOLs in the 2026 class. Of those, 4 are projected in the R3 range.
Computed factually from the 2026 prospect class roster — height/weight percentiles benchmark this player against every other ranked prospect at the same position. Recruiting arc compares his high-school 247Sports/Rivals composite to his current projected round.
Sam Hecht’s NFL Archetype: Creed Humphrey
Creed Humphrey (Kansas City Chiefs)
Closest IOL physical profile in the modern NFL: 6-4/300 lbs. Same frame, same role bucket — NOT a talent or career-arc projection.
Note: this is a physical-profile match — frame, position, role bucket. Not a talent or career-arc projection.
Similar Interior OL (C/G Prospects
Closest matches to Sam Hecht (6-4 / 300 lbs, #8 IOL) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.
- Billy SchrauthSIZE MATCH Notre Dame · 6-4/305 lbs · #9 IOL · R4
- Logan JonesSIZE MATCH Iowa · 6-3/300 lbs · #7 IOL · R3
- Connor LewSIZE MATCH Auburn · 6-3/300 lbs · #6 IOL · R3
- Jake SlaughterSIZE MATCH Florida · 6-3/300 lbs · #10 IOL · R4
- Keylan RutledgeSIZE MATCH Georgia Tech · 6-4/310 lbs · #4 IOL · R2-R3
Kansas State & The 2026 Class
Other R3-R4 prospects in the 2026 class
Different positions, same projected draft tier as Sam Hecht.
- Cole Payton · QB · North Dakota State
- Jadon Coats · RB · Purdue
- Emmett Johnson · RB · Nebraska
- Bryce Lance · WR · North Dakota State
- Antonio Williams · WR · Clemson
- Justin Joly · TE · NC State